Electrical connector assembly with internal spring component

ABSTRACT

An electrical connector assembly for electrically and mechanically connecting a component to a power source is disclosed. The connector assembly includes a male terminal with side walls defining a receiver. The side wall includes a contact arm that extends across an aperture in the side wall. The assembly also includes an internal spring member dimensioned to reside within the receiver of the male terminal. The spring member has at least one spring arm that extends from a base portion. The assembly further includes a female terminal with a receptacle dimensioned to receive both the male terminal and the spring member residing within the receiver of the male connector to define a connected position. In the connected position, the spring arm exerts an outwardly directed biasing force on the contact arm of the male terminal to outwardly displace it into engagement with an inner surface of the receptacle to ensure connectivity.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of International Patent ApplicationNo. PCT/US2019/036010, filed Jun. 7, 2019, which claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/681,973, filed on Jun. 7,2018. The disclosures set forth in the referenced applications areincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to electrical connectors, and, inparticular, to an electrical connector system having a spring actuatedelectrical connector assembly. Specifically, the present disclosurerelates to an electrical connector assembly for use in motor vehicles,including passenger and commercial vehicles, in high-power, high-currentand/or high-voltage applications where connector assemblies areessential to provide mechanical and electrical connectivity whilemeeting strict industry standards and production requirements.

BACKGROUND

Over the past several decades, the number of electrical components usedin automobiles, and other on-road and off-road vehicles such as pick-uptrucks, commercial trucks, semi-trucks, motorcycles, all-terrainvehicles, and sports utility vehicles (collectively “motor vehicles”)has increased dramatically. Electrical components are used in motorvehicles for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to,monitoring, improving and/or controlling vehicle performance, emissions,safety and creature comforts to the occupants of the motor vehicles.These electrical components are mechanically and electrically connectedwithin the motor vehicle by conventional connector assemblies, whichconsist of an eyelet and a threaded fastener. Considerable time,resources, and energy have been expended to develop connector assembliesthat meet the varied needs and complexities of the motor vehiclesmarket, however, conventional connector assemblies suffer from a varietyof shortcomings.

Motor vehicles are challenging electrical environments for both theelectrical components and the connector assemblies due to a number ofconditions, including but not limited to, space constraints that makeinitial installation difficult, harsh weather conditions, vibration,heat loads, and longevity, all of which can lead to component and/orconnector failure. For example, incorrectly installed connectors, whichtypically occur in the assembly plant, and dislodged connectors, whichtypically occur in the field, are two significant failure modes for theelectrical components and motor vehicles. Each of these failure modeslead to significant repair and warranty costs. For example, the combinedannual accrual for warranty by all of the automotive manufacturers andtheir direct suppliers is estimated at between $50 billion and $150billion, worldwide.

A more appropriate, a robust connector system must be impervious toharsh operating conditions, prolonged vibration and excessive heat,especially heat loads that accumulate “under the hood” of the vehicle.In order to create a robust solution, many companies have designedvariations of spring-loaded connectors, which have a feature thatretains the connector in place. Such spring-actuated connectorstypically have some indication to show that they are fully inserted.Sometimes, the spring-actuated feature on the connector is made fromplastic. Other times, the spring-actuated feature on the connector isfabricated from spring steel. Unfortunately, although the more recentconnectors are an improvement over dated connectors using an eyelet andthreaded connector, there are still far too many failures.

Part of the reason that spring-actuated connector assemblies fail inmotor vehicle applications is because of the design of theassembly—namely that the spring element, such as a tab, is located onthe periphery of the connector. By placing the spring tab on theexterior surface of the connector, manufacturers attempt to makeengagement of the assembly's components obvious to the worker assemblingthe part in the factory. Unfortunately, for both plastic and metal, theincreased temperatures of an automotive environment make a peripheralspring prone to premature failure. It is not uncommon for the enginecompartment of a motor vehicle to reach or exceed 100° C., withindividual components of a motor vehicle engine reaching or exceeding180° C. At 100° C., most plastics start to plasticize, reducing theretention force of the peripheral spring-actuated element. At 100° C.,the thermal expansion of the spring steel will reduce the retentionforce of a peripheral spring-actuated connector. Also, with respect tospring-actuated features formed from spring steel is the effect ofresidual material memory inherent in the spring steel as the springsteel is thermally cycled on a repeated basis between high and lowtemperatures. After many temperature cycles, the spring steel will beginto return to its original, pre-formed shape, which reduces thespring-actuated element's retention force with other components of theconnector system. This behavior makes the conventional connector systemsusceptible to vibration and failure, each of which significantly reducethe performance and reliability of conventional connectors. For theseand many other reasons, the motor vehicle industry needs a more reliableconnector system that is low-cost, vibration-resistant,temperature-resistant, and better overall electrical and mechanicalperformance.

There is clearly a market demand for a mechanically simple, lightweight,inexpensive, vibration-resistant, temperature-resistant, and robustelectrical connector system for vehicles. The description provided inthe background section should not be assumed to be prior art merelybecause it is mentioned in or associated with the background section.The background section may include information that describes one ormore aspects of the subject technology.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure relates to a spring-actuated electrical connectorsystem, which has a spring actuated connector assembly and a femaleconnector assembly. The electrical connector system is primarilyintended for use in motor vehicles, including passenger and commercialvehicles, in high-power, and/or high-voltage applications whereconnector assemblies are essential to meet industry standards andproduction requirements. The electrical connector system can also beused in military vehicles, such as tanks, personnel carriers and trucks,and marine applications, such as pleasure boats and sailing yachts, ortelecommunications hardware, such as server.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, the system includes amale connector assembly and a female connector assembly. Both the maleand female connector assemblies have a housing and a terminal. The maleterminal assembly is designed and configured to fit within the femaleterminal, which forms both a mechanical and electrical connectionbetween these terminals. Specifically, the male terminal assemblyincludes an internal spring actuator or spring member, which is designedto interact with an extent of the male terminal to ensure that a properconnection is created between the male terminal and female terminal.More specifically, the female terminal forms a receiver that isconfigured to receive an extent of the male terminal assembly. The maleterminal assembly has a male terminal body, which includes a pluralityof contact arms. A spring member is nested inside the male terminalbody. The spring member resists inward deflection and applies outwardlydirected force on the contact arms thereby creating a positiveconnection and retention force. Unlike other prior art connectionsystems, the connection between the male terminal and the femaleterminal become stronger when the connector system experiences elevatedtemperatures and electrical power.

In one embodiment, the female terminal has a tubular member which isfabricated from a sheet of highly conductive copper. The highlyconductive copper can be C151 or C110. One side of the sheet of highlyconductive copper can be pre-plated with silver, tin, or top tin, suchthat the inner surface of the tubular member is plated. The maleterminal assembly includes a male terminal body and a spring member. Themale terminal body has a plurality of contact arms. Four arms can beplaced at 90° increments, meaning that each arm has one arm directlyopposing a side wall of the female terminal. Each contact arm has athickness, a termination end, and a planar surface with a length and awidth.

A spring member is configured to be nested inside the male terminalbody. The spring member has spring arms, a middle section, and a rearwall or base. The spring arms are connected to middle or base section.The spring arms have a termination end, a thickness, and a planarsurface with a length and width. In the illustrated embodiments, thespring member has the same number of spring arms as the contact elementhas contact arms. In the illustrated embodiment, the spring arms can bemapped, one-to-one, with the contact arms. The spring arms aredimensioned so that the termination end of the associated contact armcontacts the planar surface of the spring arm. The spring arms of theillustrated embodiments are even in number, symmetrical, and evenlyspaced.

The male terminal fits inside the tubular member of the female terminalsuch that the contact arms contact the inner surface of the tubularmember. The spring arms help ensure that the contact arms create anelectrical connection with the tubular member. The termination end ofthe contact arm meets the planar surface of the spring arm, forcing thecontact arm to form a substantially perpendicular or at least an obtuseangle with respect to the outer surface of the spring arm. In theillustrated embodiments of the present disclosure, although notrequired, the metallic square tubular member has a symmetricalcross-section.

Other aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will becomeapparent upon consideration of the following detailed description andthe attached drawings wherein like numerals designate like structuresthroughout the specification.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide furtherunderstanding and are incorporated in and constitute a part of thisspecification, illustrate disclosed embodiments and together with thedescription serve to explain the principles of the disclosedembodiments. In the drawings:

FIG. 1A is an isometric view of a first embodiment of an electricalconnector system including a connector assembly having an internalspring component;

FIG. 1B is an exploded view of the connector system, showing a maleconnector assembly and a female connector assembly;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the connector system shown in FIG. 1,wherein the housing of the connector system has been removed to show afirst embodiment of a male terminal assembly and a female terminalassembly;

FIG. 3 is an exploded frontal isometric view of a first embodiment of amale terminal assembly shown in FIG. 2, wherein a first embodiment of aspring is separated from a first embodiment of a male terminal;

FIG. 4 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 3, wherein the spring member is positioned within the maleterminal receiver;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the first embodiment of the springmember, wherein the spring member is a component of the first embodimentof the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a left view of the spring member shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the spring member shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an isometric view of a second embodiment of the spring member,wherein the spring member is a component of the first embodiment of themale terminal assembly shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 9 is a left view of the spring member shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a front view of the spring member shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a graph showing the forces associated with various springmember embodiments, including the first spring embodiment, shown inFIGS. 5-7, and second spring member embodiment, shown in FIGS. 8-10;

FIG. 12 is a graph showing the mean forces associated with variousspring embodiments, including the first spring embodiment, shown inFIGS. 5-7, and second spring member embodiment, shown in FIGS. 8-10;

FIG. 13 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal shown in FIG.3, wherein a wall of the male terminal is in the open position, Po;

FIG. 14 is a rear isometric view of the male terminal shown in FIG. 3,wherein a wall of the male terminal is in the open position, Po;

FIG. 15 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 2;

FIG. 16 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 19 is a frontal cross-sectional view of the male terminal assemblyshown in FIG. 15, taken along the 19-19 line of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is a frontal isometric cross-sectional view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 15, taken along the 19-19 line of FIG. 18;

FIG. 21 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 22 is a frontal cross-sectional view of the male terminal assemblyshown in FIG. 15, taken along the 22-22 line of FIG. 21;

FIG. 23 is a frontal isometric cross-sectional view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 15, taken along the 22-22 line of FIG. 21;

FIG. 24 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 25 is a frontal cross-sectional view of the male terminal assemblyshown in FIG. 15, taken along the 25-25 line of FIG. 24;

FIG. 26 is a frontal isometric cross-sectional view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 15, taken along the 25-25 line of FIG. 24;

FIG. 27 is a top view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 28 is a left cross-sectional view of the male terminal assemblyshown in FIG. 15, taken along the 28-28 line of FIG. 27;

FIG. 29 is a frontal isometric cross-sectional view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 15, taken along the 28-28 line of FIG. 27.

FIG. 30 is a rear isometric view of a female terminal shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 31 is a left view of the female terminal shown in FIG. 31;

FIG. 32 is a rear view of the female terminal shown in FIG. 31;

FIG. 33 is an isometric view of the male terminal assembly and thefemale terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 34 is an end view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG. 33;

FIG. 35 is a left view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG. 33;

FIG. 36 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.33, taken along the 36-36 line of FIG. 35.

FIG. 37 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.33, taken along the 36-36 line of FIG. 35.

FIG. 39 is an isometric view of a second embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 40 is a frontal isometric view of a second embodiment of a maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 39;

FIG. 41 is an exploded frontal isometric view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 40, wherein a third embodiment of a spring isseparated from the second embodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 42 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 40, wherein the third embodiment of the spring member is withinthe male terminal;

FIG. 43 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 40;

FIG. 44 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 40;

FIG. 45 is a frontal view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG. 40;

FIG. 46 is a left view of the male terminal assembly and the femaleterminal shown in FIG. 39;

FIG. 47 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 40;

FIG. 48 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.39, taken along the 48-48 line of FIG. 46.

FIG. 49 is an isometric view of a third embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 50 is a frontal isometric view of a third embodiment of a maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 49;

FIG. 51 is an exploded frontal isometric view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 50, wherein a fourth embodiment of a spring isseparated from the third embodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 52 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 50, wherein the fourth embodiment of the spring member is withinthe male terminal;

FIG. 53 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 50;

FIG. 54 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 50;

FIG. 55 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 50;

FIG. 56 is a left view of the male terminal assembly and the femaleterminal shown in FIG. 49;

FIG. 57 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 50;

FIG. 58 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.49, taken along the 58-58 line of FIG. 56.

FIG. 59 is an isometric view of a fourth embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 60 is a frontal isometric view of the fourth embodiment of the maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 59;

FIG. 61 is an exploded frontal isometric view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 60, wherein a fifth embodiment of a spring isseparated from the fourth embodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 62 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 60, wherein the fifth embodiment of the spring member is withinthe male terminal;

FIG. 63 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 60;

FIG. 64 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 60;

FIG. 65 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 60;

FIG. 66 is a left view of the male terminal assembly and the femaleterminal shown in FIG. 59;

FIG. 67 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 60;

FIG. 68 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.59, taken along the 68-68 line of FIG. 66.

FIG. 69 is an isometric view of a fifth embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 70 is a frontal isometric view of the fifth embodiment of the maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 69;

FIG. 71 is an exploded frontal isometric view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 70, wherein a sixth embodiment of a spring isseparated from the fifth embodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 72 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 70, wherein the sixth embodiment of the spring member is withinthe male terminal;

FIG. 73 is a cross-sectional view of the male terminal assembly shown inFIG. 70, taken along the 73-73 line of FIG. 75.

FIG. 74 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 70;

FIG. 75 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 70;

FIG. 76 is a left view of the male terminal assembly and the femaleterminal shown in FIG. 69;

FIG. 77 is a left view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 70;

FIG. 78 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.69, taken along the 78-78 line of FIG. 76.

FIG. 79 is an isometric view of a sixth embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 80 is a frontal isometric view of the sixth embodiment of the maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 79;

FIG. 81 is an exploded frontal isometric view of the male terminalassembly shown in FIG. 80, wherein a seventh embodiment of the spring isseparated from the sixth embodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 82 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 80, wherein the spring is within the male terminal;

FIG. 83 is a right view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 80;

FIG. 84 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 80;

FIG. 85 is a right view of the male terminal assembly and the femaleterminal shown in FIG. 80;

FIG. 86 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.80, taken along the 86-86 line of FIG. 84.

FIG. 87 is an isometric view of a seventh embodiment of a male terminalassembly and a female terminal in a connected position;

FIG. 88 is a frontal isometric view of the seventh embodiment of themale terminal assembly shown in FIG. 87;

FIG. 89 is an exploded frontal isometric view of an extent of maleterminal assembly shown in FIG. 88, wherein an eighth embodiment of thespring member and a retaining member are separated from the seventhembodiment of the male terminal;

FIG. 90 is a frontal isometric view of the male terminal assembly shownin FIG. 88, wherein the spring is within the retaining member and theretaining member is separated from the male terminal;

FIG. 91 is a right view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 88;

FIG. 92 is a front view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 88;

FIG. 93 is a right view of the male terminal assembly and femaleterminal shown in FIG. 87;

FIG. 94 is a frontal isometric cross-sectional view of the terminalassembly shown in FIG. 87, taken along the 94-94 line of FIG. 93.

FIG. 95 is a right view of the male terminal assembly shown in FIG. 88;

FIG. 96 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal assembly shown in FIG.87, taken along the 94-94 line of FIG. 93.

FIGS. 97 and 98 compare the current flow through an embodiment of a maleterminal assembly disclosed here in and a male terminal disclosed withinPCT/US2018/019787.

In one or more implementations, not all of the depicted components ineach figure may be required, and one or more implementations may includeadditional components not shown in a figure. Variations in thearrangement and type of the components may be made without departingfrom the scope of the subject disclosure. Additional components,different components, or fewer components may be utilized within thescope of the subject disclosure. In addition, components from oneembodiment may be used in connection with another embodiment. Forexample, the bolt on header version of the female terminal shown in FIG.40 may be used instead of the wire version of the female terminal shownin FIG. 34. Further, it should be understood components and/or featuresof one embodiment may be utilized in addition to or in replace ofcomponents and/or features contained within another embodiment withoutdeparting from the scope of the subject disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description ofvarious implementations and is not intended to represent the onlyimplementations in which the subject technology may be practiced. Asthose skilled in the art would realize, the described implementationsmay be modified in various ways, all without departing from the scope ofthe present disclosure. Accordingly, the drawings and description are tobe regarded as illustrative and not restrictive.

The Figures show a connector system 10, which is designed tomechanically and electrically couple a device (e.g., radiator fan,heated seat, power distribution component, or another current drawingcomponent) to a power source (e.g., alternator, battery, or powerdistribution component). The connector system 10 may be used in anelectrical system, which may be contained within an airplane, the motorvehicle, a military vehicle (e.g., tank, personnel carrier, heavy-dutytruck, or troop transporter), a bus, a locomotive, a tractor, a boat, asubmarine, a battery pack, a 24-48 volt system, as a connector for abusbar, in a high-power application, in a high-current application, in ahigh-voltage applications, in connection with telecommunicationhardware, or in another other application where connector assemblies areessential to meet industry standards and production requirements.Additional details about how the connector system 10 may be used isdescribed in connection with PCT Application entitled “ElectricalConnector Assembly With Internal Spring Component And ApplicationsThereof”, which: (i) has attorney docket number 295896, (ii) was filedon Jun. 7, 2019, (iii) claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application62/681,973, and (iv) is commonly owned with this application. This PCTApplication entitled Electrical Connector Assembly With Internal SpringComponent And Applications Thereof is incorporated herein by referencefor all purposes and made a part hereof.

Referring to FIGS. 1A, 1B and 2, the connector system 10 is comprised ofa male connector assembly 12 and a female connector assembly 14. Themale connector assembly 12 includes the male housing 16 that encases atleast a first substantial extent of a male terminal assembly 50. Thefemale connector assembly 14 includes a female housing 24 that encases afirst extent of the female terminal 30. The housings 16, 24 are omittedfrom FIG. 2 to illustrate the male and female connector assemblies 12,14. The male housing 16 is designed to: (i) facilitate the coupling ofthe male terminal assembly 50 with an extent of the female connectorassembly 14, (ii) minimize the chance that male terminal assembly 50accidentally makes electrical contact with another device or structure(e.g., structures contained within the engine compartment of a vehicle,such as the frame or body of the vehicle), and (iii) meet industrystandards, such as USCAR specifications. Accordingly, the male housing16 is typically formed from a material (e.g., polymer, such as plasticor nylon) that is non-conductive using an injection molding or overmolding process. Thus, the housing 16 is capable of isolating electricalcurrent that is configured to flow between the male terminal assembly 50and other components or structures. It should be understood that themale housing 16 does not fully encase the male terminal assembly 50because at least a second extent of the male terminal assembly 50 mustbe capable of making contact with an extent of the female connectorassembly 14 to enable current to flow between the male connectorassembly 12 and the female connector assembly 14. The male connectorassembly 12 may also include a cable strain relief component 18, aconnector position assurance (CPA) component 20, and/or a lead or wire22. The CPA component 20 is described in greater detail in connectionwith PCT Application entitled “Electrical Connector System With InternalSpring Component”, which: (i) has attorney docket number 293506, (ii)was filed on Jun. 7, 2019, (iii) claims priority to U.S. ProvisionalApplication 62/681,973, and (iv) is commonly owned with thisapplication. This PCT Application entitled Electrical Connector SystemWith Internal Spring Component is incorporated herein by reference forall purposes and made a part hereof. Nevertheless, the CPA component 20is generally designed to enable the connector system 10 to meet USCARSpecifications, including USCAR-12, USCAR-25, and USCAR-2. The cablestrain relief component 18, CPA component 20, and wire 22 are optionalcomponents that may be omitted completely or replaced with differentcomponents. For example, the cable strain relief component 18 and thewire 22 may be replaced in an embodiment where the male terminalassembly 50 is directly coupled or integrally formed with a device (seeFIG. 60). Also, in an alternative embodiment, just the cable strainrelief component 18 may be omitted due to the configuration (e.g.,length, rigidity, positioning, or etc.) of the wire 22.

As shown in FIG. 1A, the female housing 24 is considerably larger thanthe male housing 16 and is configured to receive a substantial extent ofthe male housing 16. Like the male housing 16, the female housing 24 isdesigned to: (i) facilitate the coupling of the male terminal assembly50 with a female terminal 30, (ii) minimize the chance that femaleterminal 30 accidentally makes electrical contact with another device orstructure, and (iii) meet industry standards, such as USCARspecifications. Accordingly, the female housing 24 is typically formedfrom a material (e.g., polymer, such as plastic or nylon) that isnon-conductive using an injection molding or over molding process. Thus,the housing 24 is capable of isolating electrical current that isconfigured to flow through between the female terminal 30 and otherstructures. It should be understood that the female housing 24 does notfully encase the female terminal 30 because at least a second extent ofthe female terminal 30 must be capable of making contact with the maleterminal assembly 50 to enable current to flow between the femaleconnector assembly 14 and the male connector assembly 12. The femaleconnector assembly 14 may also include a cable retainer 26 and a wire28. The cable strain relief component 26 and wire 28 are optionalcomponents that may be omitted completely or replaced with differentcomponents. For example, the cable strain relief component 26 and thewire 28 may be completely replaced in an embodiment where the femaleterminal 30 is fixed to a device (see FIG. 40). Also, in an alternativeembodiment, just the cable strain relief component 26 may be omitted dueto the configuration (e.g., length, rigidity, positioning, or etc.) ofthe lead or wire 28.

FIGS. 3, 4 and 15 provide views of a first embodiment of the maleterminal assembly 50 in various stages of assembly. FIG. 3 provides thefirst embodiment of the male terminal assembly 50 in a disassembledstate or position, SD, FIG. 4 provides the first embodiment of the maleterminal assembly 50 in a partially assembled state or position, Sp, andFIG. 15 provides the first embodiment of the male terminal assembly 50in an assembled state or position, S_(A). Specifically, these Figuresshow the male terminal assembly 50, which includes a spring member 52and a male terminal 54. As discussed below, the male terminal 54includes a male terminal body 56 and at least one male terminalconnection plate 58. Said male terminal body 56 generally includes: (i)a first or front male terminal wall 60, (ii) an arrangement of maleterminal side walls 62 a-62 d that include at least one contact arm 188a-188 h, and (iii) a second or rear male terminal wall 64. The maleterminal body 56 includes a male terminal receiver 66, which is formedby the arrangement of male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d along with thesecond or rear male terminal wall 60. As discussed below, the springmember 52, 130 generally includes: (i) an arrangement of spring memberside walls 68 a-68 d with at least one spring finger 94 and (ii) a rearspring wall 70, wherein the side walls 68 a-68 d extend from the rearwall 70.

Coupling or positioning the spring member 52, 130 within the maleterminal assembly 50 occurs across multiple steps or stages. The firststage of assembling the male terminal assembly 50 is shown in FIG. 3,where the front male terminal wall 60 is in an open or flat position,Po, and the spring member 52 is separated from the male terminal 54. Inthis open position, Po, the front male terminal wall 60 is substantiallyco-planar with the male terminal side wall 62 c. This configuration ofthe male terminal 54 exposes the male terminal receiver 66 and placesthe male terminal 54 in a state that is ready for receiving the springmember 52. The second stage of assembling the male terminal assembly 50is shown in FIG. 4, where the front male terminal wall 60 is in an openor horizontal position, Po, and the spring member 52 is positionedwithin or inserted into the male terminal receiver 66. To reach theinserted state, an insertion force, FI, has been applied to the springmember 52 to insert the spring member 52 into the male terminal receiver66. The insertion force, F_(I), is applied on the spring member 52 untilthe second or rear male terminal wall 64 is positioned adjacent to therear spring wall 70 and a free end 72 of the male terminal 54 issubstantially aligned with a free end 74 of the spring member 52. Oncethe spring member 54 has reached this position, the spring member 54 isin the partially assembled state, Sp and a portion of the male terminalside walls 62 a-62 d are positioned adjacent a portion of the springmember side walls 68 a-68 d.

The third stage of assembling the male terminal assembly 50 is shown inFIG. 15, where: (i) the front male terminal wall 60 is closed orvertical, PCL, and (ii) the spring member 52 is positioned within themale terminal receiver 66. Once the spring member 54 has reached thisposition, the spring member 54 is in the assembled state, S_(A). Toclose the front male terminal wall 60, an upward directed force isapplied to the male terminal wall 60 to bend it about its seam to placeit adjacent to the side walls 62 a-62 d. After the front male terminalwall 60 is in the proper position, the top edge is coupled (e.g.,welded) to the side wall 62 a of the male terminal body 56. Here, theclosed or vertical, PCL, of the front male terminal wall 60 ensures thatthe spring member 52 is retained within the male terminal 54. It shouldbe understood that in other embodiments, the front male terminal wall 60may be omitted, may not have an opening 208 there through (see FIG. 65),may not extend the entire way from side wall 62 a to 62 c (e.g.,partially extending from any side wall 62 a-62 d), or may be a separatepiece that is coupled to both side walls 62 a and 62 c.

FIGS. 5-10 provide a first spring member embodiment 52 and a secondspring member embodiment 130. In FIG. 5-7, the first embodiment of thespring member 52 includes an arrangement of spring member side walls 68a-68 d, wherein each side wall 68 a-68 d extends from a curvilineartransition segment 80 a-80 d adjacent the rear spring wall 70. Thespring member side walls 68 a-68 d each include an intermediate or basesection 82 a-82 d and a spring arm 84 a-84 d. Said spring arm 84 a-84 dextent from a respective base section 82 a-82 d. Each spring arm 84 a-84d is comprised of individual spring fingers 94 a-94 h that arenon-contiguous to define a spring finger aperture 92 between a pair offingers 94 a-94 h, where the aperture 92 extends the length of thespring fingers 94 a-94 h. It should be understood that some embodimentsmay not include an aperture 92 and thus in these embodiments the termspring arms 84 a-84 d and term spring fingers 94 a-94 h may be usedinterchangeable. Due to the curvilinear transition segments 80 a-80 d,the outer surface 90 of the base section 82 a-82 d is substantiallyperpendicular to the outer surface 91 of the rear spring wall 70.

Referring to FIG. 6, the base spring sections 82 a-82 d extend between aspring starting plane 86 and a spring ending plane 88 (as denoted by thedotted lines in FIG. 6), which define a length of the base sections 82a-82 d. The spring starting plane 86 and the spring ending plane 88 areoriented such that they are substantially parallel to the rear springwall 70. The starting plane 86 resides at a location: (i) that isclosest to the rear spring wall 70 and (ii) where an extent of the outersurface 90 of the base spring sections 82 a-82 d is substantiallyperpendicular to the outer surface 91 of the rear spring wall 70. Theending plane 88 resides at a location where a terminus of the springfinger aperture 92 is formed in the side walls 68 a-68 d and between apair of adjacent spring fingers 94 a-94 h. The spring finger aperture 92has an open end located at the free ends of the spring fingers 94 a-94 hand a curvilinear terminus adjacent the base sections 82 a-82 d.

As shown in FIGS. 5-7, the base spring sections 82 a-82 d are notconnected to one another and thus base section gap 96 is formed betweenadjacent base spring sections 82 a-82 d of the spring member 52. Thebase section gap 96 is aligned with the spring arm openings 98, whichare discussed below. These base section gaps 96 define a first base edge100 a and a second base edge 100 b, where the edges 100 a, b are opposedand define a base section width 104. The base section gaps 96 facilitateomnidirectional expansion of the spring arms 84 a-84 d, when the spring52 and the connector system 10 are subjected to temperature extremesduring thermal cycling, which facilitates the mechanical and electricalcoupling between the male terminal 54 and the female terminal 30.

The spring arms 84 a-84 d extend from the base spring sections 82 a-82 dof the spring member 52, away from the rear spring wall 70, andterminate at the free end 74 of the spring 52. The spring arms 84 a-84 dare generally coplanar with the base spring sections 82 a-82 d and assuch the outer surface 93 of the spring arms 84 a-84 d is coplanar withthe outer surface 90 of the base spring sections 82 a-82 d. Unlike thespring arm 31 that is disclosed within FIGS. 4-8 of PCT/US2018/019787, afree end portion 74 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h does not have acurvilinear component. Instead, the free end portion 153 has asubstantially planar outer surface. This configuration is beneficialbecause it ensures that the forces asserted by the spring are focused onthe free end 72 of the male terminal body 54. In contrast, thecurvilinear extent of the spring arm 31 that are disclosed within FIGS.4-8 of PCT/US2018/019787 do not apply a force in this manner disclosedherein.

Like the base spring sections 82 a-82 d, pairings of the spring arms 84a-84 d are spaced a distance apart and are not connected to one another.Instead, an elongated spring arm openings or gaps 98 extends betweenpairs of the spring arms 84 a-84 d. These spring arm openings 98 definea first edge 102 a and a second edge 102 b of the spring arms 84 a-84 d,wherein a spring arm width 106 extends between said edges 102 a, 102 b.The first base edge 100 a is not aligned with the first spring arm edge102 a, and the second base edge 100 b is not aligned with the secondspring arm edge 102 b. Due to this misalignment, a notch 96 is formedbetween the base 82 and the spring arm 84 (and the spring fingers 94).As will be discussed in greater detail in connection with FIGS. 11-12,the offset between these edges 100 a, 102 a, 100 b, and 102 b will alterthe forces that are provided by the spring member 52 when the spring 52and the connector system 10 are subjected to temperature extremes duringthermal cycling.

The spring arms 84 a-84 d are comprised of spring finger apertures 92that extend the length of the spring arms 84 a-84 d to further defineindividual spring fingers 94 a-94 h. The spring finger apertures 92 aretypically formed parallel to the first and second edges 102 a, 102 b ofthe spring arms 84 a-84 d. It should be understood that in otherembodiments, these spring finger apertures 92 may not be parallel to thefirst and second edges 102 a, 102 b. Instead, the spring fingerapertures 92 may be formed at an angle in comparison to the first edge102 a and/or the second edge 102 b. For example, the angle between thebottom edge of the spring finger apertures 92 and the second edge 102 bmay be between 1° and 60°, preferably between 1° and 45°, and mostpreferably between 1° and 10°.

Due to the spring arm openings 98 and the spring finger apertures 92,the individual spring fingers 94 a-94 h are not contiguous with oneanother or connected to a structure other than the base spring sections82 a-84 d. This configuration facilitates omnidirectional expansion ofthe spring fingers 94 a-94 h, which facilitates in the electrical andmechanical coupling between the male terminal 54 and the female terminal30. The number and width 168 of individual spring fingers 94 a-94 h andopenings 92 may vary. For example, the first embodiment of the springmember 52 has four openings 92 and eight spring fingers 94 a-94 h. Inthe third embodiment of the spring member 1052 has eight openings 1092and twelve spring fingers 1094 a-1094 h. In addition, the width 168 ofthe individual spring fingers 94 a-94 h is typically equal to oneanother; however, in other embodiments, the spring fingers 94 a-94 h mayhave varying widths.

FIG. 8-10 show a second embodiment of the spring member 130. Either thefirst embodiment of the spring member 52 or the second embodiment 130may be utilized with the male terminal assembly 50. The secondembodiment of the spring member 130 includes an arrangement of springmember side walls 132 a-132 d, wherein each side wall 132 a-d extendsfrom a curvilinear transition segment 138 a-d adjacent the rear springwall 134. The spring member side walls 132 a-132 d each includes anintermediate or base section 140 a-140 d and a spring arm 142 a-142 d.Said spring arm 142 a-142 d extent from a respective base section 140a-d. Each spring arm 142 a-142 d is comprised of individual springfingers 152 a-152 h that are non-contiguous to define a spring fingeraperture 150 between a pair of fingers 152 a-h, where the aperture 150extends the length of the spring fingers 152 a-h. It should beunderstood that some embodiments may not include an aperture 150 andthus in these embodiments the term spring arms 142 a-142 d and termspring fingers 152 a-152 h may be used interchangeable. Due to thecurvilinear transition segments 138 a-138 d, the outer surface 148 ofthe base section 140 a-140 d is substantially perpendicular to the outersurface 149 of the rear spring wall 134.

To increase the structural rigidity of the spring 130, the curvilineartransition segment 138 a-138 d includes a divot or recess 162 formed inthe outer surface 165 of the transition segment 138 a-138 d. The divotor recess 162 forms an internal projection or strengthening rib 164 inthe inner surface 166 of the transition segment 138 a-138 d. As will bediscussed in greater detail in connection with FIGS. 11-12, this recess162 and associated strengthening rib 164 alter the forces that areassociated with the spring member 130. It should be understood that therecess 162 and associated internal strengthening rib 164 are integrallyformed with the transition segment 138 a-138 d. No material is added orsubtracted from the spring member 130 to form the recess 162 andassociated strengthening rib 164. Accordingly, the cross-sectionaldimension of the spring member 130 does not substantially change due tothe addition of these features. Nevertheless, the spring member 130 maybe formed without the recess 162 and instead, the spring member 130 mayonly include the strengthening rib 164. In this alternative embodiment,the cross-sectional area of the spring member 130 will change due to theaddition of these features.

Referring to FIG. 9, the base spring sections 140 a-140 d extend betweena spring starting plane 144 and a spring ending plane 146 (as denoted bythe dotted lines in FIG. 9), which define a length of the base sections140 a-d. The starting plane 144 and the ending plane 146 are orientedsuch that they are substantially parallel to the rear spring wall 134.The starting plane 144 resides at a location: (i) that is closest to therear spring wall 134 and (ii) where an extent of the outer surface 148of the base section 140 a-140 d is substantially perpendicular to theouter surface 149 of the rear spring wall 134. The ending plane 146resides where a terminus of the spring finger aperture 150 formed in theside walls 132 a-132 d and between a pair of adjacent spring fingers 152a-152 h. The spring finger aperture 150 has an open end located at thefree ends of the spring fingers 152 a-152 h and a curvilinear terminusadjacent the base sections 140 a-d.

As shown in FIGS. 8-10, the base sections 140 a-140 d are not connectedto one another and thus a base section gap 154 is formed betweenadjacent base sections 140 a-140 d of the spring member 130. The basesection gap 154 is aligned with the spring arm openings 157, which arediscussed below. The base section gaps 154 defined a first base edge 158a and a second base edge 158 b, where the edges 158 a, b are opposed anddefine a base section width 156 there between. The gaps 154 facilitateomnidirectional expansion of the spring arms 142 a-142 d when the spring130 and the connector system 10 are subjected to temperature extremesduring thermal cycling, which facilitates the mechanical and electricalcoupling between the male terminal 54 and the female terminal 30.

The spring arms 142 a-142 d extend from the base spring sections 140a-140 d of the spring member 130, away from the rear spring wall 134,and terminate at the free end 74 of the spring 130. The spring arms 142a-142 d are generally coplanar with the base spring sections 140 a-140 dand as such, the outer surface 143 of the spring arm 142 a-142 d iscoplanar with the outer surface 148 of the base spring sections 140a-140 d. Unlike the spring arm 31 that is disclosed within FIGS. 4-8 ofPCT/US2018/019787, a free end portion 153 of the spring fingers 152a-152 h does not have a curvilinear component. Instead, the free endportion 153 has a substantially planar outer surface. This configurationis beneficial because it ensures that the forces that are associatedwith the spring are applied to the free end 72 of the male terminal body54. In contrast, the curvilinear extent of the spring arm 31 that isdisclosed within FIGS. 4-8 of PCT/US2018/019787 do not apply a force inthis manner disclosed herein.

Like the base spring sections 140 a-140 d, pairings of the spring arms142 a-142 d are spaced a distance apart and are not connected to oneanother. Instead, an elongated spring arm opening or gap 157 extendsbetween pairs of spring arms 142 a-142 d. These spring arm openings 157define a first edge 160 a and a second edge 160 b of the spring arms 142a-142 d, wherein a spring arm width 158 extends between said edges 160a, 160 b. The first base edge 158 a is aligned with the first spring armedge 160 a, and the second base edge 158 b is aligned with the secondspring arm edge 160 b. As will be discussed in connection with FIGS.11-12, the alignment of these edges 158 a, 160 a, 158 b, and 160 balters the forces that are provided with the spring member 130 when thespring 130 and the connector system 10 are subjected to temperatureextremes during thermal cycling. The spring finger apertures 150 aretypically formed parallel to the first and second edges 160 a, 160 b ofthe spring arms 142 a-142 d. It should be understood that in otherembodiments, these spring finger apertures 150 may not be parallel tothe first and second edges 160 a, 160 b. Instead, the spring fingerapertures 150 may be formed at an angle in comparison to the first edge160 a and/or the second edge 160 b. For example, the angle between thebottom edge of the spring finger apertures 150 and the second edge 160 bmay be between 1° and 60°, preferably between 1° and 45°, and mostpreferably between 1° and 10°.

Due to the spring arm openings 157 and the spring finger apertures 150,the individual spring fingers 152 a-152 h are not contiguous with oneanother or connected to a structure other than the base section 140a-140 d. This configuration allows facilitates omnidirectional movementof the spring fingers 152 a-152 h, which facilitates the electrical andmechanical coupling between the male terminal 54 and the female terminal30. As discussed above, the number and dimensions of individual springfingers 152 a-152 h, finger openings 150 and arm openings 157 may varybetween embodiments of the spring member 130.

The spring biasing force, S_(BF), is a component of the connector system10 and helps ensure that the male terminal assembly 50 makes a propermechanical and electrical connection with the female terminal 30. Adesigner of this connector system 10 may desire to alter the springbiasing force, S_(BF), to: (i) meet customer specifications, (ii) meetUSCAR specifications, including USCAR 25, and (iii) ensure propermechanical and electrical connection with the female terminal. Thespring biasing force, S_(BF), is the amount of force that is applied bythe spring member 52, 130 to resist the inward deflection of the freeend 74 of the spring member 52, 130, when the male terminal assembly 50is inserted within the female terminal 30. Specifically, this inwarddeflection occurs during insertion of the male terminal assembly 50 dueto the fact that an extent of an outer surface 218 of the male terminalbody 56 is slightly larger than the interior of the female terminal 30.Thus, when the male terminal assembly 50 is inserted into the femaleterminal 30, the extent of the outer surface 218 is forced towards thecenter 212 of the male terminal 52. This inward force on the outersurface 218 displaces the free end 74 of the spring member 52, 130inward (i.e., towards the center 212). The spring member 52, 130 resiststhis inward displacement by providing a spring biasing, S_(BF), force.

There are multiple ways of altering the spring biasing force, S_(BF), ofspring member 52, 130. Some ways of altering the spring biasing force,S_(BF), includes: (i) changing the thickness of the spring members 52,130, (ii) changing the material of the spring members 52, 130, or (iii)altering the configuration of the spring members 52, 130. FIGS. 5-10show two different embodiments of spring members 52, 130 that have: (i)the same thickness (e.g., between 0.50 mm and 2 mm and specificallybetween 0.8 mm and 1.2 mm), (ii) are made out of the same material(e.g., spring steel) and (iii) the same length of the spring fingers 94a-94 h, 152 a-152 h (between 3.80 mm and 16.25 mm and specificallybetween 7.60 mm and 9 mm). Thus, the primary differences between theseembodiments include two alterations to the configuration of the springmembers 52, 130, which include: (i) recess 162 and associatedstrengthening rib 164 and (ii) the width 104, 156 of the base springsections 82 a-82 d.

The graphs depicted in FIGS. 11-12 show how alterations to theconfiguration of the spring members 52, 130 directly impact theinsertion force and extraction force associated with the male terminalassembly 50. The differences in the graphed insertion forces andextraction forces are directly proportional to changes in the springbiasing force, S_(BF) because all other factors were held constantduring the creation of the graphs depicted in FIGS. 11-12. Specifically,FIG. 11 shows five different embodiments of a spring member 52, 130,7130, 8052, and 9052. The vertical axis of the graph displays theaverage maximum insertion force and extraction for each of these fivespring embodiments. The insertion forces for each spring member areshown by the bar on the left 400, 402, 404, 406, 408, which has verticaland horizontal cross-hatching. The extraction forces for each springmember are shown by the bar on the right 412, 414, 416, 418, 420, whichhas a diagonal cross-hatching. The line labeled A-A denotes 45 newtons,which is the maximum amount of force that is permitted by a connectorthat meets class 2 of USCAR 25. The line labeled B-B denotes 75 newtons,which is the maximum amount of force that is permitted by a connectorthat meets class 3 of USCAR 25. The maximum averages are shown in FIG.11 were taken from the forces associated with ten insertions andextractions that are shown in FIG. 12. In particular, FIG. 12 shows theinsertion and extract forces in newton graphed againstinsertion/extraction distance.

The first, tenth, and eleventh embodiments have similar features, whilethe primary difference between these embodiments is the thickness of thespring member 52, 8052, and 9052. The second and ninth embodiments havesimilar features, while the primary difference between these embodimentsis the thickness of the spring member 130 and 7130. The thickness of theeleventh embodiment of the spring member 9052 was the thinnest of thegraphed embodiments and was approximately 25% thinner than the tenthembodiment of the spring member 8052. The tenth embodiment of the springmember 8052 was the second thinnest of the graphed embodiments and wasapproximately: (i) 25% thicker than the eleventh embodiment of thespring member 9052 and (ii) 25% thinner than the second embodiment ofthe spring member 130. The first and second embodiments 52, 130 have thesame thickness, which is approximately: (i) 25% thicker than the tenthembodiment of the spring member 8052 and (ii) 25% thinner than the ninthembodiment of the spring member 7130.

Based on these graphs in FIGS. 11-12, the first embodiment of the springmember 52 has a higher insertion force and thus a larger spring biasingforce, S_(BF), in comparison to the second embodiment of the springmember 130. Likewise, the second embodiment of the spring member 130 hasa lower insertion force and thus a smaller spring biasing force, S_(BF),in comparison to the first embodiment of the spring member 52. Thegraphs also show that the utilization of any one of these spring members52, 130, 7130, 8052, and 9052 in connection with a male terminal 54 willmeet the insertion and extraction requirements for a class 3 connectionunder USCAR 25. In addition, the graphs show that the utilization of theeleventh, tenth, and second embodiments of the spring members 130, 8052,and 9052 in connection with a male terminal 54 will meet the insertionand extraction requirements for a class 2 connection under USCAR 25.

The spring member 52, 130 is typically formed from a single piece ofmaterial (e.g., metal). Therefore, the spring member 52, 130 is aone-piece spring member 52, 130 or has integrally formed features. Inparticular, the following features are integrally formed: (i) the rearspring wall 70, 134, (ii) the curvilinear sections 80 a-80 d, 138 a-138d, (iii) the base spring sections 82 a-82 d, 140 a-140 d, and (iii) thespring finger 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h. To integrally form these features,the spring member 52, 130 is typically formed using a die formingprocess. The die forming process mechanically forces the spring member52, 130 into shape. As discussed in greater detail below, when thespring member 52, 130 is formed from a flat sheet of metal, installedwithin the male terminal 54 and connected to the female terminal 30, andis subjected to elevated temperatures, the spring member 52, 130 appliesan outwardly directed spring thermal force, S_(TF), on the contact arms188 a-188 h due in part to the fact that the spring member 52, 130attempts to return to a flat sheet. However, it should be understoodthat other types of forming the spring member 52, 130 may be utilized,such as casting or using an additive manufacturing process (e.g., 3Dprinting). In other embodiments, the features of the spring member 52,130 may not be formed from a one-piece or be integrally formed, butinstead formed from separate pieces that are welded together.

FIGS. 2-4 and 13-38 show the first embodiment of the male terminal 54that includes the male terminal body 56 and at least one male terminalconnection plate 58. Specifically, FIGS. 2-4 and 13-38 show a maleterminal 54 that includes two connection plates, wherein the first ortop connection plate 180 a is directly coupled to the second or bottomconnection plate 180 b. The connection plates 180 a, 180 b areconfigured to receive an extent of a structure (e.g., wire, as shown inFIG. 2) that electrically connects the male terminal assembly 50 to adevice (e.g., an alternator) external to the connector system 10. Thewire 22 is typically welded to one of the connection plates 180 a, b(shown in FIG. 2). However, other methods (e.g., forming the wire 22 asa part of the connection plate 58) of connecting the wire 22 to theconnection plate 58 are contemplated by this disclosure.

As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the bottom connection plate 180 b isdirectly coupled to an extent of a male terminal side wall 62 c.Meanwhile the top connection plate 180 a is coupled to a first maleterminal curvilinear section 182, which positions the top connectionplate 180 a substantially perpendicular to the rear male terminal wall64. This configuration allows for the wire 22 to be positionedsubstantially parallel to the direction of travel while the maleterminal assembly 50 is inserted into the female terminal assembly 30.Alternatively, the first male terminal curvilinear section 182 may beomitted and the connection plate 58 may be positioned substantiallyparallel to the rear male terminal wall 64. In this alternativeconfiguration, the wire 22 will be positioned substantiallyperpendicular to the direction that the male terminal assembly 50 isinserted into the female terminal 30. It should be further understood,that the connection plate 58 may have a different orientation (e.g.,between parallel and perpendicular) in comparison to the rear maleterminal wall 64.

As best shown in FIGS. 14 and 28-29, the rear male terminal wall 64 ispositioned adjacent to an extent of the plurality of male terminal sidewalls 62 a-62 d. In particular, the rear male terminal wall 64 iscoupled to a second male terminal curvilinear section 184, wherein thesecond male terminal curvilinear section 184 is coupled to one maleterminal side wall 62 a of the plurality of male terminal side walls 62a-62 d. The rear male terminal wall 64 is coupled to one male terminalside wall 62 a through an intermediate structure (e.g., second maleterminal curvilinear section 184), while not being coupled to the otherthree male terminal side walls 62 b, 62 c, 62 d through a structureother than one of the male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d. In otherwords, there is a gap that is formed between the rear male terminal wall64 and three of the male terminal side walls 62 b-62 d (see FIGS. 14 and16). In other embodiments, the rear male terminal wall 64 may be coupledto each of the plurality of male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d. Forexample, the rear male terminal wall 64 may be directly coupled to threemale terminal side walls 62 a, 62 b, and 62 d. The second male terminalcurvilinear section 184 enables the rear male terminal wall 64 to bepositioned substantially perpendicular to an extent of the plurality ofmale terminal side walls 62 a-62 d. It should be further understood,that the rear male terminal wall 64 may have a different orientation(e.g., not perpendicular) in comparison to the plurality of maleterminal side walls 62 a-62 d.

As shown in FIGS. 3-4 and 13-38, the plurality of male terminal sidewalls 62 a-62 d are coupled to one another by a curvilinear shoulder 205a-205 d, wherein a shoulder 205 is positioned between a pair of adjacentside walls 62 and features a smooth outer radius. The arrangement of thecurvilinear shoulders 205 a-205 d and the side walls 62 a-62 d enablethe male terminal body 56 to have a rectangular prism configuration andmore specifically, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3-4 and 13-38, acubic configuration. Each of the male terminal side walls 62 a-62 dinclude: (i) a generally U-shaped side wall portion 186 a-186 d, (ii)contact arms 188 a-188 h, and (iii) a plurality of contact arm openings189 a-1891. As best shown in FIGS. 13-15 and 27, the side wall portion186 a-186 d is substantially planar and has a U-shaped configurationcomprised of three substantially linear segments 190 a-190 d, 192 a-192d, 194 a-194 d. Specifically, the first and third substantially linearsegments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d are (i) end segments that haveapproximately the same length and (ii) are positioned parallel to oneanother. The second substantially linear segment 192 a-192 d: (i) is anintermediate segment that extends between both the first and thirdsubstantially linear segments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d, (ii) is shorterthan the first and third substantially linear segments 190 a-190 d, 194a-194 d, and (iii) is adjacent to the second male terminal curvilinearsection 184. The combination of the three third substantially linearsegments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d forms an aperture 101 within the sidewalls 62 a-62 d that contains the contact arms 188 a-188 h. It should beunderstood that the lengths of the substantially linear segments 190a-190 d, 192 a-192 d, 194 a-194 d can be changed based upon the designcharacteristics of the male connector 54, including but not limited toits current carrying capacity during operation of the system 10. Forexample, as shown in FIGS. 59-68, the intermediate segment 192 a-192 dis longer than either of the first or third substantially linearsegments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d.

As best shown in FIGS. 13-15 and 27-29, the contact arms 188 a-188 hextend: (i) from the second substantially linear segment or intermediatesegment 192 a-192 d at outward angle, (ii) away from the rear maleterminal wall 64, (iii) across an extent of the contact arm openings 189a-1891, and (iv) terminate just short of the front wall 60. As will bediscussed in greater detail in other sections of this application, thisconfiguration is beneficial over the configuration of the terminalsshown in FIGS. 9-15, 18, 21-31, 32, 41-42, 45-46, 48 and 50 inPCT/US2018/019787 because the male terminal 54 (i) can be shorter inoverall length, which means less metal material is needed for formationand the male terminal 52 can be installed in narrower, restrictivespaces, (ii) has a higher current carrying capacity, (iii) is easier toassemble, and (iv) has other beneficial features that are disclosedherein or can be inferred by one of ordinary skill in the art from thisdisclosure. It should be understood that the number and theconfiguration of the contact arms 188 a-188 h may be changed in otherembodiments. For example, the male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d mayeach have more contact arms 188 a-188 h (e.g., 4-20) or less contactarms (e.g., 1). As another example, the number of contact arms 188 a-188h for each male terminal side wall 62 a-62 d may not be equal.Specifically, one male terminal side wall 62 b may have zero contactarms 188 a-188 h, while another male terminal side wall 62 a may haveone or more contact arms 188 a-188 h.

The plurality of contact arm openings 189 a-1891 extend along the lengthof the contact arms 188 a-188 h in order to create a configuration thatpermits the contact arms 188 a-188 h not to be laterally connected to:(i) another contact arm 188 a-188 h, (ii) the substantially linear endsegments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d, or (iii) a structure other than thesubstantially linear intermediate segment 192 a-192 d (e.g., not thefront male terminal wall 60). This configuration allows foromnidirectional expansion of the contact arms 188 a-188 h, whichfacilitates the mechanical and electrical coupling between the maleterminal 54 and the female terminal 30. As discussed in other sectionsof this application, the width 193 of the contact arms 188 a-188 h andcontact arm openings 189 a-1891 may vary between embodiments.

Also, the configuration of the contact arms 188 a-188 h and theplurality of contact arm openings 189 a-1891 positions the contact arms188 a-188 h within the periphery of the U-shaped side wall portion 186a-186 d. This configuration is beneficial over the terminalconfiguration shown in FIGS. 3-8 in PCT/US2018/019787 because theconfiguration described therein: (i) provides improved structuralrigidity to the connector system 10 to enable the connector system 10 tomeet the requirements of the USCAR Specifications and (ii) reducesfailures of the connector system 10 due to the fact the contact arms 188a-188 h cannot be partially or fully displaced between the spring arms84 a-84 d, 142 a-142 d. Additionally, this configuration places thecontact arm openings 189 a-1891 parallel to the first and thirdsubstantially linear segments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d of the maleterminal side walls 62 a-62 d and are aligned with the spring armopenings 98, 157. This configuration of openings 157, 189 a-1891 formsthe same number of spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h as the numberof contact arms 188 a-188 h. In other words, FIGS. 19-20 and 22-23 showeight spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h and eight contact arms 188a-188 h. Additionally, these figures show that the width 168, 170 of thespring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h substantially matches the width193 of the contact arms 188 a-188 h. Stated another way, the springfingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h are dimensioned so that the terminal end206 a-206 h of the free end portion 72 contacts the planar outer surface93, 143 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h. This configurationplaces the terminal end 206 a-206 h below, and thus within, the outersurface 250 of the male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d. In other words,the terminal end 206 a-206 h resides within the receiver 66 of the maleterminal 54. It should be understood that in other embodiments, thenumber of spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h may not match the numberof contact arms 188 a-188 h. For example, there may be fewer one springfingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h for every two contact arms 188 a-188 h.Similarly, in other embodiments (see FIGS. 59-86), the width 168, 170 ofthe spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h may be wider than the width193 of the contact arms 188 a-188 h.

It should be understood that in other embodiments, these contact armopenings 189 a-1891 may not be parallel to the first and thirdsubstantially linear segments 190 a-190 d, 194 a-194 d or may not bealigned with the spring arm openings 98, 157. Instead, the contact armopenings 189 a-1891 may be formed at an angle in comparison to the firstsubstantially linear segment 190 a-190 d or third substantially linearsegment 194 a-194 d. For example, the angle between the top edge of thethird substantially linear segment 194 d and the bottom edge of thecontact arm openings 1891 may be between 1° and 60°, preferably between1° and 45°, and most preferably between 1° and 10°. Additionally, inthis example alternative embodiment, contact arm openings 189 a-1891 mayor may not be aligned with the spring arm openings 98, 157.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 2-4 and 13-38 displays a male terminalbody 56 that has eight contact arms 188 a-188 h, which are formed bytwelve contact arm openings 189 a-1891. A layout of one of the maleterminal side wall 62 a is described below. It should be understood thatthe other male terminal side walls 62 b-62 d have a similar layout.Specifically, male terminal side wall 62 a has a first contact armopening 189 a that is positioned between the first substantially linearsegment 190 a and a first contact arm 188 a, which is designed toseparate the first contact arm 188 a from the first substantially linearsegment 190 a. The male terminal side wall 62 a has a second contact armopening 189 b positioned between the first contact arm 188 a and asecond contact arm 188 b, which is designed to separate the firstcontact arm 188 a from the second contact arm 188 b. The male terminalside wall 62 a has a third contact arm opening 189 c positioned betweenthe second contact arm 188 b and the third substantially linear segment194 a, which is designed to separate the second contact arm 188 b fromthe third substantially linear segment 194 a. It should be understoodthat other arrangements of openings 189 a-1891 and contact arms 188a-188 h are contemplated by this disclosure. For example, otherconfigurations are shown in connection with the male terminals disclosedin connection with embodiments two through seven.

The contact arms 188 a-188 h include: (i) a first contact arm section196 a-196 h, (ii) a second or curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198h, and (iii) a third contact arm section 200 a-200 h. The first contactarm section 196 a-196 h is integrally formed with the intermediatesegment 192 a-192 d and extends away from the rear male terminal wall 64at an outward angle. In particular, the outward angle may be between 0.1degree and 16 degrees between the outer surface 195 of the intermediatesegment 192 a-192 d and the outer surface 197 of the first contact armsection 196 a-196 h, preferably between 5 degrees and 12 degrees andmost preferably between 7 degrees and 8 degrees. This outward angle isshown in multiple figures, but may be best visualized in connection withFIGS. 22-23. Specifically, FIGS. 22-23 show cross-sectional views thatare taken approximately to the transition between the first contact armsection 196 a-196 h and the curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198 h.These views show a gap 213, which has a height 202, that extends betweenthe inner surface 199 of the first contact arm section 196 a-196 h andthe outer surface 93, 143 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h.At its greatest point, the gap 213 has a height 202 that is between 0.50mm and 4 mm, and most preferably between 1.3 mm and 1.5 mm. Thisconfiguration allows the contact arms 188 a-188 h to be deflected inwardor towards the center 212 of the male terminal 54 by the female terminal30, when the male terminal assembly 50 is inserted into the femaleterminal 30. This inward deflection helps ensure that a propermechanical and electrical connection is created by ensuring that thecontact arms 188 a-188 h are placed in contact with the female terminal30.

The curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198 h extends from the firstcontact arm section 196 a-196 h and is positioned adjacent to an extentof the first contact arm section 196 a-196 h that is opposite of theintermediate segment 192 a-192 d. FIGS. 19-20 best show that when thespring member 52, 130 is positioned within the male terminal receiver66, the curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198 h positions the thirdcontact arm section 200 a-200 h: (i) substantially perpendicular to thespring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h of the spring member 52, 130 and(ii) in contact with the outer surface 93, 143 of the spring fingers 94a-94 h, 152 a-152 h. The curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198 h hasan arc length that is between 7.6 mm and 0.5 mm and preferably between2.3 mm and 2.8 mm. This arced configuration facilitates the insertion ofthe male terminal body 56 into the female terminal 30. If the arc lengthis increased, then the slope of the line (e.g., line that extends from 0to about 6) that is shown on FIGS. 11-12 may be decreased, but thedistance of the insertion force may increase (e.g., the line may extendpast 8). If the arc length is decreased, then the slope of the line(e.g., line that extends from 0 to about 6) that is shown on FIGS. 11-12may be increased, but the distance of the insertion force may decrease(e.g., the line may be shortened to stop at 4). Accordingly, thedesigner of the male terminal 54 balances the length of the arc toobtain the desired insertion forces.

As shown in FIGS. 19-20 and 28-29, the third contact arm section 200a-200 h extends from the curvilinear contact arm section 198 a-198 h andis substantially perpendicular to: (i) the side wall portion 186 a-186 dand (ii) the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h, when the springmember 52, 130 is inserted into the male terminal receiver 66. Thisconfiguration is beneficial over the configuration shown in FIGS. 3-8 inPCT/US2018/019787 because the assembler of the male terminal assembly 54does not have to apply a significant force in order to deform a majorityof the contact arms 188 a-188 h outward to accept the spring member 52,130. This significant force on the contact arms 188 a-188 h deforms anextent of the spring member 52, 130. This deformation can best be shownin FIG. 6 of PCT/US2018/019787 due to the slope of the contact arm 11and the fact the outer surface of the spring arm 31 and the innersurface of the contact arm 11 are adjacent to one another without a gapformed therebetween. This deformation of the spring arms 94 a-94 h mayhave a negative effect on spring's biasing force. For example, thisinward deformation may not allow the spring arms to return to theiroriginal state; thus, compromising the functionality of the spring. Incontrast to FIGS. 3-8 in PCT/US2018/019787, FIGS. 20, 22-23, 28-29 ofthe present application show a gap 213 that is formed between the outersurfaces 90, 93, 143, 148 of the spring member 52, 130 and the innersurface 199 of the contact arms 188 a-188 h. Accordingly, very littleforce is required to insert the spring member 52, 130 into the receiver66 due to the fact the user does not have to force the contact arms 188a-188 h to significantly deform during the insertion of the spring 53,130.

As shown in FIGS. 25-29, when the spring member 54, 130 is inserted intothe male terminal receiver 66 and is in the assembled state, S_(F), therear spring wall 70, 134 is placed in adjacent to the rear male terminalwall 64 and the base section 82 a-82 d is positioned adjacent to theintermediate segment 192 a-192 d. This placement of the rear spring wall70, 134 substantially aligns the free ends 72, 74 of the spring member52, 130 and the male terminal body 56. More specifically, the free end74 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h extend slightly past thefree end 72 of the third contact arm sections 200 a-200 h. However, thefree end 74 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h terminate justshort of the inner surface 216 of the front male terminal wall 60. Inother words, the gap 210 between the inner surface 216 of the front maleterminal wall 60 and the outermost edge 172, 174 of the free end 74 ofthe spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h is less than the thickness ofthe contact arms 188 a-188 h. This configuration helps reduce failuresof the connector by ensuring that the third contact arm section 200a-200 h does not deform during usage, wherein the third contact armsection 200 a-200 h extends past the free end 74 of the spring fingers94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h.

FIGS. 3-4, 13-15, 17, and 33-34 show a touch proof probe opening 208that is formed in the front male terminal wall 60 of the male terminalbody 56. The touch proof probe opening 208 has a substantiallyrectangular shape and more specifically a substantially square shape.The touch proof probe opening 208 is configured to receive a touch proofprobe, which is described in greater detail within PCT applicationentitled Electrical Connector System With Internal Spring Component.Overall, the touch proof probe and touch proof probe opening aredesigned and configured to reduce the chance that a foreign object(e.g., human finger) is placed in contact with the male terminal 54 orthe female terminal 30. The shape of the touch proof probe opening 208is configured to substantially match the touch proof probe and may alsomatch the overall shape of the male terminal body 56. However, it shouldbe understood that the touch proof probe opening 208 may not match theshape of the male terminal body 56 and/or the shape of the touch proofprobe may be altered to a different shape, including round, triangular,hexagonal or polygonal.

The male terminal 54 is typically formed from a single piece of material(e.g., metal). Therefore, the male terminal 54 is a one-piece maleterminal 54 and has integrally formed features. In particular, thebottom connection plate 180 b is integrally formed with one 62 c of theplurality of male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d and specifically isintegrally formed with the intermediate segment 192 c. Additionally, thetop connection plate 180 a is integrally formed with: (i) the first maleterminal curvilinear section 182, (ii) the second male terminalcurvilinear section 184 and (iii) one 62 a of the plurality of maleterminal side walls 62 a-62 d. Further, the first contact arm section196 a-196 h is integrally formed with: (i) one 62 a of the plurality ofmale terminal side walls 62 a-62 d and specifically with theintermediate segment 192 a, (ii) curvilinear contact arm section 198 a,and (iii) third contact arm section 200 a. To integrally form thesefeatures, the male terminal 54 is typically formed using a die cuttingprocess. However, it should be understood that other types of formingthe male terminal 54 may be utilized, such as casting or using anadditive manufacturing process (e.g., 3D printing). In otherembodiments, the features of the male terminal 54 may not be formed fromone-piece or be integrally formed, but instead formed from separatepieces that are welded together.

FIGS. 30-32 depict various views of the female terminal 30. The femaleterminal 30 includes: (i) a female terminal body 220 and (ii) a femaleterminal connection plate 224. The connection plate 224 is directlyconnected to the female terminal body 220 and is configured to receivean extent of a structure (e.g., wire 28, as shown in FIG. 2) thatconnects the female terminal 30 to a structure (e.g., a radiator fan)outside of the connector system 10. The wire 28 is typically welded tothe top connection plate 224 (shown in FIG. 2). However, other methods(e.g., forming the wire 28 as a part of the connection plate 224) ofconnecting the wire 28 to the connection plate 224 is contemplated bythis disclosure.

The female terminal body 220 is substantially tubular and is comprisedof: (i) a plurality of female terminal side walls 226 a-226 d and (ii) aplurality of female terminal curvilinear sections 228 a-228 d. Theplurality of terminal curvilinear sections 228 a-228 d are coupled tothe plurality of female terminal side walls 226 a-226 d to form arectangular shape. Specifically, one female terminal side wall 226 a ofthe plurality of female terminal side walls 226 a-226 d is: (i)substantially parallel with another one female terminal side wall 226 cof the plurality of female terminal side walls 226 a-226 d and (ii)substantially perpendicular to two female terminal side wall 226 b, 226d of the plurality of female terminal side walls 226 a-226 d. The femaleterminal body 220 has an inner surface 230 that defines a femaleterminal receiver 232. The female terminal receiver 232 is designed andconfigured to be coupled, both electrically and mechanically, to anextent of the male terminal 54, when the male terminal 54 is insertedinto the female terminal receiver 232.

The female terminal 30 is typically formed for a single piece ofmaterial (e.g., metal). Therefore, the female terminal 30 is a one-piecefemale terminal 30 and has integrally formed features. In particular,the connection plate 224 is integrally formed with female terminal body220 and specifically is integrally formed with the one female terminalside wall 226 c. Additionally, each female terminal curvilinear sections228 a-228 d is integrally formed with at least one of the plurality offemale terminal side walls 226 a-226 d. To integrally form thesefeatures, the female terminal 30 is typically formed using a die cuttingprocess. However, it should be understood that other types of formingthe female terminal 30 may be utilized, such as casting or using anadditive manufacturing process (e.g., 3D printing). In otherembodiments, the features of the female terminal 30 may not be formedfrom one-piece or be integrally formed, but instead formed from separatepieces that are welded together.

FIGS. 33-38 depict various views of the first embodiment of the maleterminal assembly 50 within the female terminal 30. As shown in FIGS.37-38 and discussed below, the combination of outer surfaces 218 of thecontact arms 188 a-188 h form a rectangle that has a width/height thatis slightly larger (e.g., between 0.1% and 15%) than the width/height ofthe rectangle that is associated with the female terminal receiver 232.When the slightly larger male terminal assembly 50 is inserted into theslightly smaller female terminal receiver 232, the outer surface 218 ofthe contact arms 188 a-188 h are forced towards the center 212 of themale terminal body 56. Because the outer surface 218 of the contact arms188 a-188 h are forced towards the center 212 of the male terminal body56, the free ends 74 of the spring member 52, 130 are also forcedtowards the center 212 of the male terminal body 56. The spring member52, 130 resists this inward displacement by providing a spring biasingforce, S_(BF), (as depicted by the arrows labeled “S_(BF)” in FIG. 36).This spring biasing force, S_(BF), is generally directed outward againstthe terminal end 206 a-206 h of the third contact arm sections 200 a-200h. In other words, this spring biasing force, S_(BF), provides a wedgingor shimmering effect against the contact arms 188 a-188 h therebyholding the outer surfaces 218 of the contact arms 188 a-188 h inengagement with the female terminal 30.

FIGS. 33-38 also show that the connector system 10 provides a connectorthat is 360° compliant, which meets the certain car or automotivespecifications. As shown in this embodiment, the contact arms 188 a-188h are symmetrical and evenly spaced. The connector system 10 is 360°compliant because the outer surface 218 of the contact arms 188 a-188 hare in contact with each side wall 226 a-226 d of the female terminal 30and the spring 54, 130 applies forces on the contact arms 188 a-188 h toforce the contact arms 188 a-188 h into contact with each side wall 226a-226 d. The 360° compliance attribute of the connector system 10 aidsin maintaining mechanical and electrical connection under strenuousmechanical conditions, e.g., vibration. In a traditional blade orfork-shaped connectors, i.e., connection on only two opposing sides,vibration may develop a harmonic resonance that causes the connector tooscillate with greater amplitude at specific frequencies. For example,subjecting a fork-shaped connector to harmonic resonance may cause thefork-shaped connector to open. Opening of the fork-shaped connectorduring electrical conduction is undesirable because momentary mechanicalseparation of the fork-shaped connector from an associated terminal mayresult in electrical arcing. Arcing may have significant negativeeffects on the terminal as well as the entire electrical system of whichthe terminal is a component. However, the 360° compliance feature of thepresent disclosure may prevent catastrophic failures caused by strongvibration and electrical arcing.

The male terminal 54, including the contact arms 188 a-188 h, may beformed from a first material such as copper, a highly-conductive copperalloy (e.g., C151 or C110), aluminum and/or another suitableelectrically conductive material. The first material preferably has anelectrical conductivity of more than 80% of IACS (International AnnealedCopper Standard, i.e., the empirically derived standard value for theelectrical conductivity of commercially available copper). For example,C151 typically has 95% of the conductivity of standard, pure coppercompliant with IACS. Likewise, C110 has a conductivity of 101% of IACS.In certain operating environments or technical applications, it may bepreferable to select C151 because it has anti-corrosive propertiesdesirable for high-stress and/or harsh weather applications. The firstmaterial for the male terminal 54 is C151 and is reported, per ASTM B747standard, to have a modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus) ofapproximately 115-125 gigapascals (GPa) at room temperature and acoefficient of terminal expansion (CTE) of 17.6 ppm/degree Celsius (from20-300 degrees Celsius) and 17.0 ppm/degree Celsius (from 20-200 degreesCelsius). The spring member 52, 130 may be formed from a second materialsuch as spring steel, stainless steel (e.g., 301SS, ¼ hard), and/oranother suitable material having greater stiffness (e.g., as measured byYoung's modulus) and resilience than the first material of the maleterminal 54. The second material preferably has an electricalconductivity that is less than the electrical conductivity of the firstmaterial. The second material also has a Young's modulus that may beapproximately 193 GPa at room temperature and a coefficient of terminalexpansion (CTE) of 17.8 ppm/degree Celsius (from 0-315 degrees Celsius)and 16.9 ppm/degree Celsius (from 0-100 degrees Celsius).

Based on the above exemplary embodiment, the Young's modulus and the CTEof the spring member 52, 130 is greater than the Young's modulus and theCTE of the male terminal 54. Thus, when the male terminal 54 is used ina high power application that subjects the connector system 10 torepeated thermal cycling with elevated temperatures (e.g., approximately150° Celsius) then: (i) the male terminal 54 become malleable and losessome mechanical resilience, i.e., the copper material in the maleterminal 54 softens and (ii) the spring member 52, 130 does not becomeas malleable or lose as much mechanical stiffness in comparison to themale terminal 54. Thus, when utilizing a spring member 52, 130 that ismechanically cold forced into shape (e.g., utilizing a die formingprocess) and the spring member 52, 130 is subjected to elevatedtemperatures, the spring member 52, 130 will attempt to at least returnto its uncompressed state, which occurs prior to insertion of the maleterminals assembly 50 within the female terminal 30, and preferably toits original flat state, which occurs prior to the formation of thespring member 52, 130. In doing so, the spring member 52, 130 will applya generally outward directed thermal spring force, S_(TF), (as depictedby the arrows labeled “S_(TF)” in FIG. 36) on the terminal ends 206a-206 h of the contact arms 188 a-188 h. This thermal spring force,S_(TF), is dependent upon local temperature conditions, including highand/or low temperatures, in the environment where the system 10 isinstalled. Accordingly, the combination of the spring biasing force,S_(BF), and the thermal spring force, S_(TF), provides a resultantbiasing force, S_(RBF), that ensures that the outer surface 218 of thecontact arms 188 a-188 h are forced into contact with the inner surface230 of the female terminal 30 when the male terminal 54 is inserted intothe female terminal 30 and during operation of the system 10 to ensurean electrical and mechanical connection. Additionally, with repeatedthermal cycling events, the male terminal assembly 50 will develop anincrease in the outwardly directed resultant spring forces, S_(RBF),that are applied to the female terminal 30 during repeated operation ofthe system 10.

FIGS. 37-38 show various measurements that are associated with the firstembodiment of the connector system 10. It should be understood thatthese measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus, aconnector system 10 may have measurements that are multiple times largerthan the below measurements or multiple times smaller than the belowmeasurements. The first measurement or opposed contact arms height,which is labeled 1A, extends from the outer surface 218 of the contactarm 188 a to the opposed outer surface 218 of contact arm 188 f and ispreferably less than 33 mm and more preferably between 19.5 mm and 13.0mm. The second measurement or opposed side wall height, which is labeled1B, extends from an outer surface 250 of the male terminal side wall 62c to an outer surface 250 of the opposed male terminal side wall 62 aand is preferably less than 27.5 mm and more preferably between 16 mmand 11 mm. The third measurement, aperture width, or U-shaped width,which is labeled 1C, extends from an inner edge 252 of the firstsubstantially linear segment 190 d to an inner edge 254 of the thirdsubstantially linear segment 194 d and is preferably less than 12.5 mmand more preferably between 8 mm and 5 mm.

The fourth measurement or spring finger width, which is labeled 1D,extends from an inner edge 256 of a contact arm 188 g to an inner edge258 of an adjacent contact arm 188 h and is preferably less than 2.55 mmand more preferably between 1.5 mm and 1 mm. The fifth measurement orcontact arm width, which is labeled 1E, extends from an inner edge 256of a contact arm 188 g to an opposed second edge 260 of the contact arm188 g; thus, the fifth measurement quantifies the width 193 of thecontact arm 188 g along with the width 168, 170 of the spring finger 94g, 152 g. The fifth measurement is preferably less than 4 mm and morepreferably between 2.55 mm and 1.5 mm. The sixth measurement, which islabeled 1F, extends from an outer surface 262 of the front male terminalwall 60 to an outer surface 264 of the third contact arm section 200 fand is preferably less than 3 mm and more preferably between 1.75 mm and1.25 mm. The seventh measurement or contact arm length, which is labeled1G, extends from the outer surface 264 of the third contact arm section200 f to the forward most edge 266 of the intermediate segment 192 d;thus, the seventh measurement quantifies the length of the contact arm188 f. The seventh measurement is preferably less than 25.5 mm and morepreferably between 15.25 mm and 10.25 mm.

The eighth measurement, which is labeled 1H, extends from the forwardmost edge 266 of the intermediate segment 192 d to the outer surface 268of the rear male terminal wall 64 and is preferably less than 7 mm andmore preferably between 4.25 mm and 2.8 mm. The ninth measurement or theconnection plate length, which is labeled 1I, extends from the outersurface 268 of the rear male terminal wall 64 to the outer edge 270 ofthe male terminal connection plate 58 and is preferably less than 35 mmand more preferably between 21 mm and 14 mm. The tenth measurement,which is labeled 1J, extends between the outer surfaces of the top andbottom connection plates 180 a, 180 b and is preferably less than 3 mmand more preferably between 1.75 mm and 1 mm. The eleventh measurement,which is labeled 1K, extends from the outer surface 272 of the topconnection plate 180 a to the outer surface 250 of the male terminalside wall 62 a and is preferably less than 24 mm and more preferablybetween 14.5 mm and 9.4 mm.

The twelfth measurement or the first contact arm section length, whichis labeled 1L, extends along the length of the first contact arm section196 h and is preferably less than 22 mm and more preferably between 13mm and 8.5 mm. The thirteenth measurement, which is labeled 1M, extendsalong the horizontal length of the second and third contact arm sections198 h, 200 h and is preferably less than 4.06 mm and more preferablybetween 2.3 and 1.5 mm. The fourteenth and nineteenth measurements orthe terminal width, which are labeled 1N and 1S, are substantially equaland extend from the outer surface 274 of the female terminal side wall226 a to the outer surface 274 to the opposed outer surface 274 sidewall 226 c and is preferably less than 35.5 mm and more preferablybetween 21.3 mm and 14.2 mm. The fifteenth and twenty measurements orthe interior terminal width, which are labeled 1O and 1T, aresubstantially equal and extend from the inner surface 230 of the femaleterminal side wall 226 a to the opposed inner surface 230 of the femaleterminal side wall 226 c and is preferably less than 31.5 mm and morepreferably between 21.3 mm and 14.2 mm.

Accordingly, the thickness of the female terminal 30 is less than 4.06mm. The sixteenth and twenty-first measurements, which are labeled 1Pand 1U, are substantially equal and extend from the outer surface 90 ofthe base spring section 82 a, 140 a to the outer surface 90 of theopposed base spring section 82 c, 140 c and is preferably less than 27.4mm and more preferably between 16 mm and 11 mm. The seventeenth andtwenty-second measurements, which are labeled 1Q and 1V, aresubstantially equal and extend from the inner surface 276 of the basespring section 82 a, 140 a to the inner surface 276 of the opposed basespring section 82 c, 140 c and is preferably less than 24.0 mm and morepreferably between 14.2 mm and 9.4 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of thespring member 52, 130 is less than 3.5 mm. The eighteenth and twentythird measurements, which are labeled 1R and 1W, are substantially equaland extend from the terminal end 206 of the third contact arm section200 a to the terminal end 206 of the opposed third contact arm section200 f and is preferably less than 22.6 mm and more preferably between13.5 mm and 8.5 mm. Accordingly, the distance between the outer surfaces93 of the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h is approximately 5% lesswhen the spring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h are inserted into thefemale terminal receiver 232. Finally, the twenty-third measurement,which is labeled 1X, extends from the inner surface 278 of the fingersection 94 a, 152 a to the inner surface 278 of the opposed fingersection 94 f, 152 f and is preferably less than 19.05 mm and morepreferably between 11 mm and 7.5 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of thespring fingers 94 a-94 h, 152 a-152 h is less than 0.14.

FIGS. 39-48 show various views of a second embodiment of the connectorsystem 1010. It should be understood that this second embodiment of theconnector system 1010 contains structures, features and/or functionsthat are similar to the structures, features and/or functions disclosedin connection with the first embodiment of the connector system 10.Accordingly, reference numbers that are separated by 1000 will be usedin connection with this second embodiment to denote the structuresand/or features that are similar to the structures and/or featuresdisclosed in the first embodiment. For example, the contact arms of thefirst embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, while the contact arms of thesecond embodiment are labeled 1188 a-1188 l. Therefore, one of ordinaryskill in the art shall assume that the contact arms of the firstembodiment 188 a-188 h have similar structures, features and/orfunctions in comparison to the contact arms of the second embodiment1188 a-1188 l. Additionally, one of ordinary skill in the art shallunderstand that while the structures, features and/or functions aresimilar that does not mean the structures, features and/or functions areexactly the same. For example, the length of the contact arms 188 a-188h of the first embodiment is shorter than the length of the contact arms1188 a-1188 h of the second embodiment. Further, it should be understoodthat structures and/or features of this third embodiment may be used inconnection with any other embodiment contained within this applicationor its related applications.

Like the first embodiment of the connector system 10, the secondembodiment of the connector system 1010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 1050 and (ii) a female terminal 1030. The male terminalassembly 1050 has a spring member 1130 and a male terminal 1054. Likethe second embodiment of the spring member 130, this third embodiment ofthe spring member 1130 includes: (i) a recess 1162 and an associatedstrengthening rib 1164, and (ii) the width of the base spring section1140 a-1140 d is approximately equal to the width of the spring arms1142 a-1142 d. Also, like the first embodiment of the male terminal 54,this second embodiment of the male terminal 1054 includes a plurality ofcontact arms 1188 a-1188 l that: (i) are integrally formed with aintermediate segment 1192 a-1192 d of the male terminal side walls 1062a-1062 d, (ii) extend away from the connection plate 1058 and towardsthe front male terminal wall 1060 at an outwardly directed angle, (iii)extend across an extent of the contact arm openings 1189 a-1189 p, (iv)have a terminal end that is configured to contact the planar outersurface 1143 of the spring fingers 1152 a-11521, and (v) have a thirdcontact arm section 1200 a-12001, which is configured to be positionedsubstantially perpendicular to the spring fingers 1152 a-11521.

Also, like the first embodiment of the contact arm 188 a-188 h, thesecond embodiment of the contact arm 1188 a-1188 l are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 1130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 1188 a-1181are depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 1212 of themale terminal 1054), when the male terminal assembly 1050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 1232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 1130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 1188 a-1188 l to create a 360 degree mechanical andelectrical connection with the female terminal 1030.

One difference between the first embodiment of the connector system 10and the second embodiment of the connector system 1010 is the fact thatthe second embodiment of the female terminal 1030 is designed to bedirectly coupled to a device (e.g., alternator), while the firstembodiment of the female terminal 30 is designed to be directly coupledto a wire 28 (as shown in FIG. 2). This is shown by the configuration ofthe female connection plate 1224. Another difference between the firstembodiment of the connector system 10 and the second embodiment of theconnector system 1010 is the fact that the male terminal side walls 1062a-1062 d that is associated with the second embodiment each have threecontact arms 1188 a-1188 l, while the male terminal side walls 62 a-62 dthat are associated with the first embodiment each have two contact arms188 a-188 h. In other words, the second embodiment of the connectorsystem 1010 has a total of 12 contact arms 1188 a-1188 l, while thefirst embodiment of the connector system 10 has a total of 8 contactarms 188 a-188 h.

While the dimensional of the second embodiment will be discussed ingreater detail below, the addition of the four contact arms 1188 a-1188l increases the height and width of the male terminal assembly between20% to 25%. This increase in size allows for the second embodiment ofthe connector system 1010 to carry between 15% and 25% more current thanthe first embodiment of the connector system 10, while staying withinthe industry specifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2. In particular,while meeting the industry specifications, the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 is capable of carrying up to 280 amps and the secondembodiment of the connector system 1010 is capable of carrying up to 350amps.

FIGS. 47-48 show various measurements that are associated with thesecond embodiment of the connector system 1010. It should be understoodthat these measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus,the connector system 1010 may have measurements that are multiple timeslarger than the below measurements or multiple times smaller than thebelow measurements. These views show that the spring member 1130 will bedeflected inward by between 1% and 8% of the height of the male terminalassembly 1050, when the male terminal assembly 1050 is inserted into thefemale terminal 1030. The first measurement, which is labeled 2A,extends from the outer surface of the contact arm 1188 a to the opposedouter surface of contact arm and is preferably less than 42.7 mm andmore preferably between 25.4 mm and 17 mm. The second measurement, whichis labeled 2B, extends from an outer surface of the male terminal sidewall to an outer surface of the opposed male terminal side wall and ispreferably less 36 mm and more preferably between 21.5 and 14.5 mm. Thethird measurement, which is labeled 2C, extends from an inner edge ofthe first substantially linear segment to an inner edge of the thirdsubstantially linear segment and is preferably less than 20.3 mm andmore preferably between 12 mm and 8 mm.

The fourth measurement, which is labeled 2D, extends from an inner edge1256 of a contact arm to an inner edge of an adjacent contact arm and ispreferably less than 2.54 mm and more preferably between 1.5 mm and 1mm. The fifth measurement, which is labeled 2E, extends from an inneredge of a contact arm to an opposed second edge of the contact arm;thus, the fifth measurement quantifies the width of the contact armalong with the width of the spring finger. The fifth measurement ispreferably less than 4 mm and more preferably between 2.5 mm and 1.5 mm.The sixth measurement, which is labeled 2F, extends from an outersurface of the front male terminal wall to an outer surface of the thirdcontact arm section and is preferably less than 4 mm and more preferablybetween 2.5 mm and 1.5 mm. The seventh measurement, which is labeled 2G,extends from the outer surface 1264 of the third contact arm section tothe forward most edge of the intermediate segment; thus, the seventhmeasurement quantifies the length of the contact arm. The seventhmeasurement is preferably less than 28 mm and more preferably between 17mm and 11 mm.

The eighth measurement, which is labeled 2H, extends from the forwardmost edge of the intermediate segment to the outer surface of the rearmale terminal wall and is preferably less than 10.75 mm and morepreferably between 6.35 and 4.0 mm. The ninth measurement, which islabeled 2I, extends from the outer surface of the rear male terminalwall to the outer edge of the male terminal connection plate and ispreferably less than 39 mm and more preferably between 23 mm and 15.25mm. The tenth measurement, which is labeled 2J, extends between theouter surfaces of the top and bottom connection plates and is preferablyless than 5.1 mm and more preferably between 3 mm and 2 mm. The eleventhmeasurement, which is labeled 2K, extends from the outer surface of thetop connection plate to the outer surface of the male terminal side walland is preferably less than 31 mm and more preferably between 18.5 mmand 12 mm. The twelfth measurement, which is labeled 2L, extends alongthe length of the first contact arm section and is preferably less than23 mm and more preferably between 14 mm and 9 mm.

The thirteenth measurement, which is labeled 2M, extends along thehorizontal length of the second and third contact arm sections and ispreferably less than 5.6 mm and more preferably between 3.3 mm and 2 mm.The fourteenth and nineteenth measurements, which are labeled 2N and 2S,are substantially equal and extend from the outer surface of the femaleterminal side wall to the outer surface to the opposed outer surfaceside wall and is preferably less than 47.25 mm and more preferablybetween 28.5 mm and 19 mm. The fifteenth and twenty measurements, whichare labeled 2O and 2T, are substantially equal and extend from the innersurface of the female terminal side wall to the opposed inner surface ofthe female terminal side wall and is preferably less than 41 mm and morepreferably between 25 mm and 16.3 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of thefemale terminal 1030 is less than 6 mm. The sixteenth and twenty-firstmeasurements, which are labeled 2P and 2U, are substantially equal andextend from the outer surface of the base spring section to the outersurface of the opposed base spring section and is preferably less than36 mm and more preferably between 21.5 mm and 14.25 mm.

The seventeenth and twenty-second measurements, which are labeled 2Q and2V, are substantially equal and extend from the inner surface of thebase spring section 1140 a to the inner surface of the opposed basespring section and is preferably less than 30.7 mm and more preferablybetween 18.5 mm and 12 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of the springmember 1130 is less than 5 mm. The eighteenth and twenty thirdmeasurements, which are labeled 2R and 2W, are substantially equal andextend from the terminal end of the third contact arm section to theterminal end of the opposed third contact arm section and is preferablyless than 30 mm and more preferably between 17.8 mm and 12 mm.Accordingly, the distance between the outer surfaces of the springfingers 1152 a-1152 h is approximately 3.5% less when the spring fingers1152 a-1152 h are inserted into the female terminal receiver 1232.Finally, the twenty-third measurement, which is labeled 2X, extends fromthe inner surface of the finger section to the inner surface of theopposed finger section and is preferably less than 25.7 mm and morepreferably between 15.5 mm and 10 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of thespring fingers 1152 a-1152 h is less than 5 mm.

FIGS. 49-58 show various views of a third embodiment of the connectorsystem 2010. It should be understood that this third embodiment containsstructures, features and/or functions that are similar to thestructures, features and/or functions disclosed in connection with thefirst embodiment. Accordingly, reference numbers that are separated by2000 will be used in connection with this third embodiment to denote thestructures and/or features that are similar to the structures and/orfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment. For example,the contact arms of the first embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, whilethe contact arms of the third embodiment are labeled 2188 a-2188 d.Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art shall assume that thecontact arms of the first embodiment 188 a-188 h have similarstructures, features and/or functions in comparison to the contact armsof the third embodiment 2188 a-2188 d. Additionally, one of ordinaryskill in the art shall understand that while the structures, featuresand/or functions are similar that does not mean the structures, featuresand/or functions are exactly the same. For example, the length of thecontact arms 188 a-188 h of the first embodiment is longer than thelength of the contact arms 2188 a-2188 h of the third embodiment.Further, it should be understood that structures and/or features of thisthird embodiment may be used in connection with any other embodimentscontained within this application or its related applications.

Like the first embodiment of the connector system 10, the thirdembodiment of the connector system 2010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 2050 and (ii) a female terminal 2030. The male terminalassembly 2050 has a spring member 2130 and a male terminal 2054. Likethe second embodiment of the spring member 130, this fourth embodimentof the spring member 2130 includes a recess 2162 and an associatedstrengthening rib 2164. However, unlike the second embodiment of thespring member 130, this fourth embodiment of the spring member 2130 hasa width of the base spring section 2140 a-2140 d that is notapproximately equal to the width of the spring arms 2142 a-2142 d. Also,like the first embodiment of the male terminal 54, this third embodimentof the male terminal 2054 includes a plurality of contact arms 2188a-2188 d that: (i) are integrally formed with a intermediate segment2192 a-2192 d of the male terminal side walls 2062 a-2062 d, (ii) extendaway from the connection plate 2058 and towards the front male terminalwall 2060 at an outwardly directed angle, (iii) extend across an extentof the contact arm openings 2189 a-2189 h, (iv) have a terminal end thatis configured to contact the planar outer surface of the spring fingers2152 a-2152 d, and (v) have a third contact arm section 2200 a-2200 dthat is configured to be positioned substantially perpendicular to thespring fingers 2152 a-2152 d.

Also, like the first embodiment of the contact arm 188 a-188 h, thethird embodiment of the contact arm 2188 a-2188 d are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 2130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 2188 a-2188 dare depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 2212 of themale terminal 2054), when the male terminal assembly 2050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 2232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 2130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 2188 a-2188 d to create a 360 degree mechanical andelectrical connection with the female terminal 2030.

One difference between the first embodiment of the connector system 10and the third embodiment of the connector system 2010 is the fact thatthe male terminal side walls 2062 a-2062 d that are associated with thethird embodiment each have one contact arms 2188 a-2188 d, while themale terminal side walls 62 a-62 d that are associated with the firstembodiment each have two contact arms 188 a-188 h. In other words, thethird embodiment of the connector system 2010 has a total of 4 contactarms 2188 a-2188 d, while the first embodiment of the connector system10 has a total of 8 contact arms 188 a-188 h. While the dimensional ofthe third embodiment will be discussed in greater detail below, thesubtraction of the four contact arms 2188 a-2188 d decreases the heightand width of the male terminal assembly between 10% and 15%. Thisdecrease in size allows the first embodiment of the connector system 10to carry between 15% and 25% more current than the third embodiment ofthe connector system 2010, while staying within the industryspecifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2. In particular, while meetingthe industry specifications, the first embodiment of the connectorsystem 10 is capable of carrying up to 280 amps and the third embodimentof the connector system 2010 is capable of carrying up to 220 amps.

FIGS. 57-58 show various measurements that are associated with the thirdembodiment of the connector system 2010. It should be understood thatthese measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus, aconnector system 2010 may have measurements that are multiple timeslarger than the below measurements or multiple times smaller than thebelow measurements. These views show that the spring member 2130 will bedeflected inward by between 1% and 10% of the height of the maleterminal assembly 2050, when the male terminal assembly 2050 is insertedinto the female terminal 2030. The first measurement, which is labeled3A, extends from the outer surface of the contact arm to the opposedouter surface of contact arm and is preferably less than 29 mm and morepreferably between 17.3 mm and 11.43 mm. The second measurement, whichis labeled 3B, extends from an outer surface of the male terminal sidewall to an outer surface of the opposed male terminal side wall and ispreferably less than 23.5 mm and more preferably between 14 mm and 9 mm.The third measurement, which is labeled 3C, extends from an inner edgeof the first substantially linear segment to an inner edge of the thirdsubstantially linear segment and is preferably less than 20.32 mm andmore preferably between 12.2 mm and 8.13 mm.

The fifth measurement, which is labeled 3E, extends from an inner edgeof a contact arm to an opposed second edge of the contact arm; thus, thefifth measurement quantifies the width of the contact arm along with thewidth of the spring finger. The fifth measurement is preferably lessthan 4 mm and more preferably between 2.5 mm and 1.5 mm. The sixthmeasurement, which is labeled 3F, extends from an outer surface of thefront male terminal wall to an outer surface of the third contact armsection and is preferably less than 2 mm and more preferably between 1.3mm and 0.8 mm. The seventh measurement, which is labeled 3G, extendsfrom the outer surface of the third contact arm section to the forwardmost edge of the intermediate segment 2192 d; thus, the seventhmeasurement quantifies the length of the contact arm. The seventhmeasurement is preferably less than 26.5 mm and more preferably between15.7 mm and 10.4 mm.

The eighth measurement, which is labeled 3H, extends from the forwardmost edge of the intermediate segment to the outer surface 2268 of therear male terminal wall and is preferably less than 8.64 mm and morepreferably between 5.1 mm and 3.3 mm. The ninth measurement, which islabeled 31, extends from the outer surface of the rear male terminalwall to the outer edge of the male terminal connection plate and ispreferably less than 34.5 mm and more preferably between 20 mm and 13mm. The tenth measurement, which is labeled 3J, extends between theouter surfaces of the top and bottom connection plates and is preferablyless than 3.05 mm and more preferably between 1.8 mm and 1 mm. Theeleventh measurement, which is labeled 3K, extends from the outersurface of the top connection plate to the outer surface of the maleterminal side wall and is preferably less than 20.0 mm and morepreferably between 11.7 mm and 7.9 mm. The twelfth measurement, which islabeled 3L, extends along the length of the first contact arm sectionand is preferably less than 22.0 mm and more preferably between 13.0 mmand 8.6 mm.

The thirteenth measurement, which is labeled 3M, extends along thehorizontal length of the second and third contact arm sections and ispreferably less than 4.6 mm and more preferably between 2.5 mm and 1.8mm. The fourteenth and nineteenth measurements, which are labeled 3N and3S, are substantially equal and extend from the outer surface of thefemale terminal side wall to the outer surface to the opposed outersurface side wall and is preferably less than 31.5 mm and morepreferably between 18.8 mm and 12.44 mm. The fifteenth and twentymeasurements, which are labeled 3O and 3T, are substantially equal andextend from the inner surface of the female terminal side wall to theopposed inner surface of the female terminal side wall and is preferablyless than 27.4 mm and more preferably between 16.25 mm and 10.9 mm.Accordingly, the thickness of the female terminal is less than 4 mm. Thesixteenth and twenty-first measurements, which are labeled 3P and 3U,are substantially equal and extend from the outer surface of the basespring section to the outer surface of the opposed base spring sectionand is preferably less than 23.4 mm and more preferably between 14 mmand 9 mm.

The seventeenth and twenty-second measurements, which are labeled 3Q and3V, are substantially equal and extend from the inner surface of thebase spring section to the inner surface of the opposed base springsection and is preferably less than 19.8 mm and more preferably between11.7 mm and 8 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of the spring member isless than 3.5 mm. The eighteenth and twenty third measurements, whichare labeled 3R and 3W, are substantially equal and extend from theterminal end of the third contact arm section to the terminal end of theopposed third contact arm section and is preferably less than 18.8 mmand more preferably between 11 mm and 7.5 mm. Accordingly, the distancebetween the outer surfaces of the spring fingers 2152 a-2152 d isbetween 1% and 10% of the height of the male terminal assembly 2050,when the spring fingers 2152 a-2152 d are inserted into the femaleterminal receiver 2232. Finally, the twenty-third measurement, which islabeled 3X, extends from the inner surface of the finger section to theinner surface of the opposed finger section and is preferably less than15.24 mm and more preferably between 18.7 mm and 6.1 mm. Accordingly,the thickness of the spring fingers 2152 a-2152 h is less than 3 mm.

FIGS. 59-68 show various views of a fourth embodiment of the connectorsystem 3010. It should be understood that this fourth embodimentcontains structures, features and/or functions that are similar to thestructures, features and/or functions disclosed in connection with thefirst embodiment. Accordingly, reference numbers that are separated by3000 will be used in connection with this fourth embodiment to denotethe structures and/or features that are similar to the structures and/orfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment. For example,the contact arms of the first embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, whilethe fourth embodiment of the contact arms of the fourth embodiment islabeled 3188 a-3188 d. Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art shallassume that the contact arms of the first embodiment 188 a-188 h havesimilar structures and/or features in comparison to the contact arms ofthe fourth embodiment 3188 a-3188 d. Additionally, one of ordinary skillin the art shall understand that while the structures, features and/orfunctions are similar that does not mean the structures, features and/orfunctions are exactly the same. For example, the length of the contactarms 188 a-188 h of the first embodiment is longer than the length ofthe contact arms 3188 a-3188 h of the third embodiment. Further, itshould be understood that structures and/or features of this thirdembodiment may be used in connection with any other embodimentscontained within this application or its related applications.

Like the first embodiment of the connector system 10, the fourthembodiment of the connector system 3010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 3050 and (ii) a female terminal 30. The male terminal assembly3050 has a spring member 3130 and a male terminal 3054. Like the secondembodiment of the spring member 130, this fifth embodiment of the springmember 3130 includes recess 3162 and an associated strengthening ribs3164. However, unlike the second embodiment of the spring member 130,this fifth embodiment of the spring member 3130 has a width of the basespring section 3140 a-3140 d that is not approximately equal to thewidth of the spring arms 3142 a-3142 d. Also, like the first embodimentof the male terminal 54, this fourth embodiment of the male terminal3054 includes a plurality of contact arms 3188 a-3188 h that: (i) areintegrally formed with a intermediate segment 3192 a-3192 d of at leasttwo of the male terminal side walls 3062 a-3062 d, (ii) extend away fromthe connection plate 3058 and towards the front male terminal wall 3060at an outwardly directed angle, (iii) extend across an extent of thecontact arm openings 3189 a-3189 j, (iv) have a terminal end 3206 thatis configured to contact the planar outer surface 3143 of the springfingers 3152 a-3152 h, and (v) have a third contact arm section 3200a-3200 d is configured to be positioned substantially perpendicular tothe spring fingers 3152 a-3152 d.

Also, like the first embodiment of the contact arm 188 a-188 h, thefourth embodiment of the contact arm 3188 a-3188 h are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 3130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 3188 a-3188 hare depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 3212 of themale terminal 3054), when the male terminal assembly 3050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 3232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 3130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 3188 a-3188 d to create a mechanical and electricalconnection with the female terminal 3030.

Unlike the other embodiments of the connector system 10, 1010, 2010,which are described above, this embodiment of the connector system 3010is not 360 degrees compliant. This is because male terminal body 3056does not have contact arms 3188 a-3188 h formed in each of the maleterminal side walls 3062 a-3062 d. In particular, contact arms 3188a-3188 h are not formed within male terminal side walls 3062 b and 3062d. Nevertheless, another contact arm 3188 a-3188 h may be formed withinmale terminal side walls 306 b and 3062 d to create a new embodimentthat is 360 degrees compliant. Another difference between the firstembodiment of the connector system 10 and the fourth embodiment of theconnector system 3010 is the fact that two of the male terminal walls3062 a and 3062 c each have four contact arms 3188 a-3188 h, while themale terminal side walls 62 a-62 d that are associated with the firstembodiment each have two contact arm sections 188 a-188 h. In otherwords, the fourth embodiment of the connector system 3010 has a total of8 contact arms 3188 a-3188 h, while the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 has a total of 8 contact arms 188 a-188 h. While thedimensional of the fourth embodiment will be discussed in greater detailbelow, the configuration of contact arms 3188 a-3188 h in this fourthembodiment provides a low-profile connector. In particular, thislow-profile configuration of the fourth embodiment provides a connectorthat has a width that is between 35% and 45% less than the firstembodiment without reducing the current carrying capacity of theconnector system. Thus, the four embodiment is capable of carrying up to280 amps, while meeting industry specifications, including DIN EN60512-5-2.

FIGS. 67-68 show various measurements that are associated with thefourth embodiment of the connector system 3010. It should be understoodthat these measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus, aconnector system 3010 may have measurements that are multiple timeslarger than the below measurements or multiple times smaller than thebelow measurements. In these views, the spring member 3052 is not shownto scale and thus the terminal ends 3172 are not shown in a deflectedinward state. Nevertheless, it should be understood that the springmember 3130 will be deflected inward by between 1% and 10% of the heightof the male terminal assembly 3050, when the male terminal assembly 3050is inserted into the female terminal 3030. The first measurement, whichis labeled 4A, extends from the outer surface of the contact arm to theopposed outer surface of contact arm and is preferably less than 20.8 mmand more preferably between 12.7 mm and 8.4 mm. The second measurement,which is labeled 4B, extends from an outer surface of the male terminalside wall to an outer surface of the opposed male terminal side wall andis preferably less than 14.7 mm and more preferably between 9.0 mm and5.9 mm. The third measurement, which is labeled 4F, extends from anouter surface of the front male terminal wall to an outer surface of thethird contact arm section and is preferably less than 3.05 mm and morepreferably between 1.8 mm and 1 mm. The fourth measurement, which islabeled 4G, extends from the outer surface of the third contact armsection to the forward most edge of the intermediate segment; thus, theseventh measurement quantifies the length of the contact arm. The fourthmeasurement is preferably less than 25.5 mm and more preferably between15.24 mm and 1 mm.

The fifth measurement, which is labeled 4H, extends from the forwardmost edge of the intermediate segment to the outer surface of the rearmale terminal wall 3064 and is preferably less than 8.6 mm and morepreferably between 5.1 mm and 3.30 mm. The sixth measurement, which islabeled 41, extends from the outer surface of the rear male terminalwall to the outer edge of the male terminal connection plate and ispreferably less than 34.3 mm and more preferably between 20 mm and 13.5mm. The seventh measurement, which is labeled 4J, extends between theouter surfaces of the top and bottom connection plates and is preferablyless than 3.05 mm and more preferably between 1.8 mm and 1 mm. Theeighth measurement, which is labeled 4K, extends from the outer surfaceof the top connection plate to the outer surface of the male terminalside wall and is preferably less than 11.7 mm and more preferablybetween 6.9 mm and 4.6 mm. The ninth measurement, which is labeled 4L,extends along the length of the first contact arm section and ispreferably less than 22 mm and more preferably between 13 mm and 8.7 mm.

The tenth measurement, which is labeled 4M, extends along the horizontallength of the second and third contact arm sections and is preferablyless than 3.30 mm and more preferably between 2 mm and 1.3 mm. Theeleventh measurement, which is labeled 4N, extends from the outersurface of the female terminal side wall to the outer surface to theopposed outer surface side wall and is preferably less than 65 mm andmore preferably between 39 mm and 26 mm. The twelfth measurement, whichis labeled 40, extends from the inner surface of the female terminalside wall to the opposed inner surface of the female terminal side walland is preferably less than 61 mm and more preferably between 36.5 mmand 24.4 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of the female terminal is lessthan 4 mm. The thirteenth measurement, which is labeled 4S, extends fromthe outer surface of the female terminal side wall to the outer surfaceto the opposed outer surface side wall and is preferably less than 23.4mm and more preferably between 14 mm and 9.4 mm. The fourteenthmeasurement, which is labeled 4T, extends from the inner surface of thefemale terminal side wall to the opposed inner surface of the femaleterminal side wall and is preferably less than 19.3 mm and morepreferably between 11.4 mm and 7.6 mm. Accordingly, the thickness of thefemale terminal is less than 4 mm.

FIGS. 69-78 show various views of a fifth embodiment of the connectorsystem 4010. It should be understood that this fifth embodiment containsstructures, features and/or functions that are similar to thestructures, features and/or functions disclosed in connection with thefirst embodiment. Accordingly, reference numbers that are separated by4000 will be used in connection with this fifth embodiment to denote thestructures and/or features that are similar to the structures and/orfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment. For example,the contact arms of the first embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, whilethe contact arms of the fifth embodiment are labeled 4188 a-4188 d.Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art shall assume that thecontact arms of the first embodiment 188 a-188 h have similar structuresand/or features in comparison to the contact arms of the fifthembodiment 4188 a-4188 d. Additionally, one of ordinary skill in the artshall understand that while the structures, features and/or functionsare similar that does not mean the structures, features and/or functionsare exactly the same. For example, the length of the contact arms 188a-188 h of the first embodiment is longer than the length of the contactarms 4188 a-4188 h of the fifth embodiment. Further, it should beunderstood that structures and/or features of this third embodiment maybe used in connection with any other embodiment contained within thisapplication or its related applications.

Like the first embodiment of the connector system 10, the fifthembodiment of the connector system 4010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 4050 and (ii) a female terminal 4030. The male terminalassembly 4050 has a spring member 4130 and a male terminal 4054. Likethe second embodiment of the spring member 130, this sixth embodiment ofthe spring member 4130 includes a recess and an associated strengtheningrib 4164. However, unlike the second embodiment of the spring member130, this sixth embodiment of the spring member 4130 has a width of thebase spring section 4140 a-4140 d that is not approximately equal to thewidth of the spring arms 4142 a-4142 d. Also like the first embodimentof the male terminal 54, this fifth embodiment of the male terminal 4054includes a plurality of contact arms 4188 a-4188 d that: (i) areintegrally formed with a intermediate segment 4192 a-4192 d of the maleterminal side walls 4062 a-4062 d, (ii) extend away from the connectionplate 4058 and towards the front male terminal wall 4060 at an outwardlydirected angle, (iii) extend across an extent of the contact armopenings 4189 a-4189 h, and (iv) are configured to contact the planarouter surface of the spring fingers 4152 a-4152 d. Unlike the firstembodiment of the male terminal 54, the fifth embodiment does not have athird contact arm section is configured to be positioned substantiallyperpendicular to the spring fingers 4152 a-4152 d. Instead, in thisfifth embodiment, the third contact arm section is omitted and thecurvilinear contact arm section 4198 a-4198 h continues to form asubstantially circular structure 4201 a-4201 d.

Also, like the first embodiment of the contact arm 188 a-188 h, thefifth embodiment of the contact arm 4188 a-4188 d are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 4130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 4188 a-4188 dare depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 4212 of themale terminal 4054), when the male terminal assembly 4050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 4232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 4130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 4188 a-4188 d to create a 360° mechanical and electricalconnection with the female terminal 4030.

One difference between the first embodiment of the connector system 10and the fifth embodiment of the connector system 4010 is the fact thatthe fifth embodiment of the male terminal 4054 includes a secondaryhousing 4300 that is configured to surround an extent of the maleterminal 4054. Specifically, the secondary housing 4300 includes: (i) afront housing wall 4302 and (ii) two side housing walls 4304 that arecoupled to the front housing wall 4302. The front housing wall 4302 hasan opening 4310 that is configured to allow for the touch proof probe tobe inserted into the male terminal 4054, when the male terminal 4054 iscoupled with the female terminal 4030. Adjacent to the opening 4310, thefront housing wall 4302 has two curvilinear sections 4312 a, 4312 b. Asbest shown in FIGS. 73 and 75, these curvilinear sections 4312 a, 4312 bare configured to be inserted into touch proof probe opening 4208, whenthe secondary housing 4300 is positioned over the male terminal body4056. The side housing walls 4304 have openings 4306 that are configuredto allow two of the contact arms 4188 a, 4188 c to extend therethrough,when the secondary housing 4300 is positioned over the male terminalbody 4056. Adjacent to the openings 4306, the side housing walls 4304have two curvilinear sections 4308 a, 4308 b. As best shown in FIG. 74,these curvilinear sections 4308 a, 4308 b are configured to be insertedinto two of the contact arm openings 4189 g, 4189 h, when the secondaryhousing 4300 is positioned over the male terminal body 4056. Best shownin FIGS. 71-72 and 73, the secondary housing 4300 also includesretaining members 4314 that are configured to be inserted into aretaining member opening 4316 that is formed in a portion of theintermediate segment 4192 a-4192 d of the male terminal body 4056.Finally, the secondary housing 4300 may be formed from material (e.g.,spring steel or 301SS, ¼ hard) that is similar to, or is the same as,the material that the spring member 4130 is formed from. Thisconfiguration helps ensure that the male terminal 4054 retains its shapeand does not become too pliable under elevated temperatures and highpower loads.

Another difference between the first embodiment of the connector system10 and the fifth embodiment of the connector system 4010 is the factthat the male terminal side walls 4062 a-4062 d associated with thefifth embodiment each have one contact arm sections 4188 a-4188 d, whilethe male terminal side walls 62 a-62 d that are associated with thefirst embodiment each have two contact arm sections 188 a-188 h. Inother words, the fifth embodiment of the connector system 4010 has atotal of 4 contact arms 4188 a-4188 d, while the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 has a total of 8 contact arms 188 a-188 h. While thedimensional of the fifth embodiment will be discussed in greater detailbelow, the subtraction of the four contact arms 4188 a-4188 d decreasesthe height and width of the male terminal assembly by between 45% and55%. This decrease in size allows the first embodiment of the connectorsystem 10 to carry between 60% and 70% more current than the fifthembodiment of the connector system 4010, while staying within theindustry specifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2. In particular,while meeting the industry specifications, the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 is capable of carrying up to 280 amps and the fifthembodiment of the connector system 4010 is capable of carrying up to 100amps.

FIGS. 77-78 show various measurements that are associated with the fifthembodiment of the connector system 4010. It should be understood thatthese measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus, aconnector system 4010 may have measurements that are multiple timeslarger than the below measurements or multiple times smaller than thebelow measurements. These views show that the spring member 4130 will bedeflected inward by between 3% and 15% of the height of the maleterminal assembly 4050, when the male terminal assembly 4050 is insertedinto the female terminal 4030. The first measurement, which is labeled5A, extends from the outer surface of the contact arm to the opposedouter surface of contact arm and is preferably between 10.2 mm and 6.9mm. The second measurement, which is labeled 5B, extends from an outersurface of the male terminal side wall to an outer surface of theopposed male terminal side wall and is preferably between 6.9 mm and 4.6mm. The third measurement, which is labeled 5C, extends from an inneredge of the first substantially linear segment to an inner edge of thethird substantially linear segment and is preferably between 2.54 mm and18.3 mm. The fifth measurement, which is labeled 5E, extends from aninner edge of a contact arm 4188 g to an opposed second edge of thecontact arm; thus, the fifth measurement quantifies the width 4193 ofthe contact arm along with the width of the spring finger. The fifthmeasurement is preferably between 2.5 mm and 1.5 mm. The sixthmeasurement, which is labeled 5F, extends from an outer surface of thefront male terminal wall to an outer surface of the third contact armsection and is preferably between 1.5 mm and 1 mm. The seventhmeasurement, which is labeled 5G, extends from the outer surface of thethird contact arm section to the forward most edge of the intermediatesegment; thus, the seventh measurement quantifies the length of thecontact arm 4188 f. The seventh measurement is preferably between 8 mmand 5 mm.

The eighth measurement, which is labeled 5H, extends from the forwardmost edge of the intermediate segment to the outer surface of the rearmale terminal wall 4064 and is preferably between 5.1 mm and 3.30 mm.The ninth measurement, which is labeled SI, extends from the outersurface of the rear male terminal wall to the outer edge of the maleterminal connection plate and is preferably between 13.2 mm and 8.9 mm.The tenth measurement, which is labeled 51, extends between the outersurfaces of the top and bottom connection plates and is preferablybetween 3 mm and 2 mm. The eleventh measurement, which is labeled 5K,extends from the outer surface of the top connection plate to the outersurface of the male terminal side wall and is preferably between 2.3 mmand 16.25 mm. The twelfth measurement, which is labeled 5L, extendsalong the length of the first contact arm section 4196 h and ispreferably between 6 mm and 1 mm.

The thirteenth measurement, which is labeled 5M, extends along thehorizontal length of the second and third contact arm sections and ispreferably between 1.5 mm and 1 mm. The fourteenth and nineteenthmeasurements, which are labeled 5N and 5S, are substantially equal andextend from the outer surface of the female terminal side wall to theouter surface to the opposed outer surface side wall and is preferablybetween 11.43 and 7.62. The fifteenth and twenty measurements, which arelabeled 50 and 5T, are substantially equal and extend from the innersurface of the female terminal side wall to the opposed inner surface ofthe female terminal side wall and is preferably between 9.5 mm and 6 mm.Accordingly, the thickness of the female terminal is less than 2. Thesixteenth and twenty-first measurements, which are labeled 5P and 5U,are substantially equal and extend from the outer surface of the basespring section to the outer surface of the opposed base spring sectionand is preferably between 5.3 mm and 3.5 mm.

The seventeenth and twenty-second measurements, which are labeled 5Q and5V, are substantially equal and extend from the inner surface of thebase spring section 4140 a to the inner surface of the opposed basespring section and is preferably between 6.60 and 4.3 mm. Accordingly,the thickness of the spring member is between 1.3 mm and 0.6 mm. Theeighteenth and twenty-third measurements, which are labeled 5R and 5W,are substantially equal and extend from the terminal end of the thirdcontact arm section to the terminal end of the opposed third contact armsection and is preferably between 5.1 mm and 3.3 mm. Accordingly, thedistance between the outer surfaces of the spring fingers 4152 a-4152 his approximately 9% less when the spring fingers 4152 a-4152 h areinserted into the female terminal receiver 4232. Finally, thetwenty-third measurement, which is labeled 5X, extends from the innersurface of the finger section to the inner surface of the opposed fingersection and is preferably between 4.10 mm and 2.54 mm. Accordingly, thethickness of the spring fingers 4152 a-4152 h is between 1.3 mm and 0.6mm.

FIGS. 78-86 show various view of a sixth embodiment of the connectorsystem 5010. It should be understood that this sixth embodiment containsstructures and/or features that are similar to the structures andfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment of theconnector system 10. Accordingly, reference numbers that are separatedby 5000 will be used in connection with this sixth embodiment to denotethe structures and/or features that are similar to the structures and/orfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment. For example,the contact arms of the first embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, whilethe sixth embodiment of the contact arms of the sixth embodiment arelabeled 5188 a-5188 d. Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art shallassume that the contact arms of the first embodiment 188 a-188 h havesimilar structures and/or features in comparison to the contact arms ofthe sixth embodiment 5188 a-5188 d. Additionally, it should beunderstood that structures and/or features of this sixth embodiment maybe used in connection with any other embodiment contained within thisapplication or its related applications.

Like the fifth embodiment of the connector system 4010, the sixthembodiment of the connector system 5010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 5050 and (ii) a female terminal 5030. The male terminalassembly 5050 has a spring member 5130 and a male terminal 5054. Likethe second embodiment of the spring member 130, this seventh embodimentof the spring member 5130 includes a recess 5162 and an associatedstrengthening rib. However, unlike the second embodiment of the springmember 130, this seventh embodiment of the spring member 5130 has awidth 5156 of the base spring section 5140 a-5140 d that is notapproximately equal to the width 5158 of the spring arms 5142 a-5142 d.In addition, the spring 5130 includes spring openings 5131 that areformed in the spring arms 5152 a-5152 d and are configured to receive aretaining structure 5330, which may be best seen when comparing FIGS. 82and 83.

Also, like the fifth embodiment of the male terminal 4054, this sixthembodiment of the male terminal 5054 includes a plurality of contactarms 5188 a-5188 d that: (i) are integrally formed with a intermediatesegment 5192 a-5192 d of the male terminal side walls 5062 a-5062 d,(ii) extend away from the connection plate 5058 and towards the frontmale terminal wall 5060 at an outwardly directed angle, (iii) extendacross an extent of the contact arm openings 5189 a-5189 h, and (iv) areconfigured to contact the planar outer surface 5143 of the springfingers 5152 a-5152 d. Like the fifth embodiment of the male terminal4054, the sixth embodiment does not have a third contact arm section,which is configured to be positioned substantially perpendicular to thespring fingers 5152 a-5152 d. Instead, in this sixth embodiment, thethird contact arm section is omitted and the curvilinear contact armsection 5198 a-5198 h continues to form a substantially circularstructure 5201 a-5201 d.

Also, like the fifth embodiment of the contact arm 4188 a-4188 h, thesixth embodiment of the contact arm 5188 a-5188 d are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 5130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 5188 a-5188 dare depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 5212 of themale terminal 5054), when the male terminal assembly 5050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 5232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 5130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 5188 a-5188 d to create a 360° mechanical and electricalconnection with the female terminal 5030.

One difference between the fifth embodiment of the connector system 4010and the sixth embodiment of the connector system 5010 is the directionof the insertion of the spring 5130. Specifically, the fifth embodimentof the connector 4010 places the rear wall of the spring 4130 near theconnection plate 4058 and away from the front wall of the male terminalbody, while the sixth embodiment of the connector 5010 places the rearwall of the spring member 5130 near the front wall of the male terminalbody and away from the connection plate 5058. Another difference betweenthe first embodiment of the connector system 10 and the sixth embodimentof the connector system 5010 is the fact that the male terminal sidewalls 5062 a-5062 d associated with the sixth embodiment each have onecontact arm sections 5188 a-5188 d, while the male terminal side walls62 a-62 d that are associated with the first embodiment each have twocontact arm sections 188 a-188 h. In other words, the sixth embodimentof the connector system 5010 has a total of 4 contact arms 5188 a-5188d, while the first embodiment of the connector system 10 has a total of8 contact arms 188 a-188 h. The subtraction of the four contact arms5188 a-5188 d decreases the height and width of the male terminalassembly by between 45% and 55%. This decrease in size allows the firstembodiment of the connector system 10 to carry between 60% and 70% morecurrent than the sixth embodiment of the connector system 5010, whilestaying within the industry specifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2.In particular, while meeting the industry specifications, the firstembodiment of the connector system 10 is capable of carrying up to 280amps and the sixth embodiment of the connector system 5010 is capable ofcarrying up to 100 amps.

FIGS. 87-96 show various views of a seventh embodiment of the connectorsystem 6010. It should be understood that this seventh embodimentcontains structures, features and/or functions that are similar to thestructures, features and/or functions disclosed in connection with thefirst embodiment. Accordingly, reference numbers that are separated by6000 will be used in connection with this seventh embodiment to denotethe structures and/or features that are similar to the structures and/orfeatures disclosed in connection with the first embodiment. For example,the contact arms of the first embodiment are labeled 188 a-188 h, whilethe contact arms of the seventh embodiment are labeled 6188 a-6188 d.Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art shall assume that thecontact arms of the first embodiment 188 a-188 h have similar structuresand/or features in comparison to the contact arms of the seventhembodiment 6188 a-6188 d. Additionally, one of ordinary skill in the artshall understand that while the structures, features and/or functionsare similar that does not mean the structures, features and/or functionsare exactly the same. Further, it should be understood that structuresand/or features of this seventh embodiment may be used in connectionwith any other embodiment contained within this application or itsrelated applications.

Like the first embodiment of the connector system 10, the seventhembodiment of the connector system 6010 includes: (i) a male terminalassembly 6050 and (ii) a female terminal 6030. The male terminalassembly 6050 has a spring member 6130 and a male terminal 6054. Likethe second embodiment of the spring member 130, this eighth embodimentof the spring member 6130 includes: (i) a recess and an associatedstrengthening rib and (ii) has a width 6156 of the base spring section6140 a-6140 d that is approximately equal to the width 6158 of thespring arms 6142 a-6142 d. Also like the first embodiment of the maleterminal 54, this seventh embodiment of the male terminal 6054 includesa plurality of contact arms 6188 a-6188 d that: (i) are integrallyformed with an extent of the male terminal body 6056, (ii) extend awayfrom the connection plate 6058 and towards the front male terminal wall6060 at an outwardly directed angle, (iii) extend across an extent ofthe contact arm openings 6189 a-6189 h, and (iv) are configured tocontact the planar outer surface 6143 of the spring fingers 6152 a-6152d. Unlike the first embodiment of the male terminal 54, the seventhembodiment does not have a third contact arm section is configured to bepositioned substantially perpendicular to the spring fingers 6152 a-6152d. Instead, in this seventh embodiment, the third contact arm section isomitted and the curvilinear contact arm section 6198 a-6198 h continuesto form a substantially circular structure 6201 a-6201 d.

Also, like the first embodiment of the contact arm 188 a-188 h, theseventh embodiment of the contact arm 6188 a-6188 d are designed tointeract with the internal spring member 6130. Like the disclosurediscussed in connection with FIGS. 33-36, the contact arms 6188 a-6188 dare depressed or deflected inward (i.e., towards the center 6212 of themale terminal 6054), when the male terminal assembly 6050 is insertedwithin the female terminal receiver 6232. Also, as discussed above inconnection with FIG. 36, the spring member 6130 applies both a springbiasing force, S_(BF), and a spring thermal force, S_(TF), on thecontact arms 6188 a-6188 d to create a 360 degree mechanical andelectrical connection with the female terminal 6030.

One difference between the first embodiment of the connector system 10and the seventh embodiment of the connector system 6010 is the fact thatthe male terminal body 6054 of the seventh embodiment is round and notrectangular. With this alteration in shape, certain components of themale terminal 54 are omitted (e.g., third male terminal curvilinearsections 205 a-205 d) and the shape of other components are altered(e.g., U-shaped first male terminal side wall portions are notsubstantially planer). Another difference between the first embodimentof the connector system 10 and the seventh embodiment of the connectorsystem 6010 is the fact that the seventh embodiment of the male terminal6054 includes a spring holder 6350 that is configured to receive thespring member 6130 retain the spring member 6130 within the maleterminal 6352. The spring holder 6350 has a plurality of opening 6352formed therein to receive the spring arms 6188 a-6188 d. In addition,the spring holder 6350 has a spring holder retention member 6354. Theretention member 6354 has a first or normal state and a second ordeformed state. Specifically, when the spring holder 6350 is beinginserted into the male terminal 6052, the retention member 6354 is movedfrom the normal state to the deformed state. Once the spring holder 6350is fully inserted into the male terminal 6052, the retention member 6354will return from the deformed state to a normal state and will securethe spring member 6130 within the male terminal 6052.

Another difference between the first embodiment of the connector system10 and the seventh embodiment of the connector system 6010 is the factthat the seventh embodiment of the connector system 6010 has a total of4 contact arms 6188 a-6188 d, while the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 has a total of 8 contact arms 188 a-188 h. While thedimensional of the seventh embodiment will be discussed in greaterdetail below, the subtraction of the four contact arms 6188 a-6188 ddecreases the height and width of the male terminal assembly by between50% and 60%. This decrease in size allows the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 to carry between 80% and 90% more current than theseventh embodiment of the connector system 6010, while staying withinthe industry specifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2. In particular,while meeting the industry specifications, the first embodiment of theconnector system 10 is capable of carrying up to 280 amps and theseventh embodiment of the connector system 6010 is capable of carryingup to 40 amps.

FIGS. 97-88 show various measurements that are associated with theseventh embodiment of the connector system 6010. It should be understoodthat these measurements are exemplary and shall not be limiting. Thus, aconnector system 6010 may have measurements that are multiple timeslarger than the below measurements or multiple times smaller than thebelow measurements. In these views, the spring member 6052 is deflectedinward by between 1% and 12% when the male terminal assembly 6050 isinserted into the female terminal 6030. The first measurement, which islabeled 5B, is the diameter around an outer surface 6250 of the maleterminal side wall and is preferably between 5.5 mm and 3.68 mm. Thesecond measurement, which is labeled 5E, extends from an inner edge 6256of a contact arm 6188 g to an opposed second edge 6260 of the contactarm 6188 g; thus, the fifth measurement quantifies the width 6193 of thecontact arm 6188 g along with the width 6168, 6170 of the spring finger6152 g. The fifth measurement is preferably between 1.4 mm and 1 mm. Thethird measurement, which is labeled SI, extends from the outer surface6268 of the rear male terminal wall 6064 to the outer edge 6270 of themale terminal connection plate 6058 and is preferably between 32.4 mmand 21.6 mm. The fourth measurement, which is labeled 5Y, extends fromthe outer surface of the spring holder 6350 to the outer surface 6268 ofthe rear male terminal wall 6064 and is preferably between 18 mm and 12mm. The fifth measurement, which is labeled 6Z, is the diameter aroundan inner surface 6230 of the female terminal 6030 and is preferablybetween 7.2 mm and 4.8 mm. The sixth measurement, which is labeled 6AA,is the diameter around an outer surface 60 of the female terminal 6030and is preferably between 7.2 mm and 4.8 mm.

As discussed throughout this application, the male terminal 50 that isdescribed herein has numerous advantages over the terminals shown anddescribed in PCT/US2018/019787. For example, the male terminal 50 has aconfiguration that places the terminal ends 206, 1206, 2206, 3206, 4206,5206, 6206 of the contact arms 188, 1188, 2188, 3188, 4188, 5188, 6188away from the rear male terminal wall 64, 1064, 2064, 3064, 4064, 5064,606 and the connection member 58, 1058, 2058, 3058, 4058, 5058, 6058.This configuration enables the male terminal assembly 50, 1050, 2050,3050, 4050, 5050, 6050 to: (i) have a reduced length, which reduces theoverall length of the connector system 10, 1010, 2010, 3010, 4010, 5010,6010 and reduces the amount of materials, (ii) reduces the insertiondistance, (iii) provides ergonomic advantages related to the insertionof the spring member in to the receiver 66, 1066, 2066, 3066, 4066,5066, 6066, and (iv) reduces the complexity of the current flow andpossible failure points that are associated with a complex current flow.In particular, a basic current flow 7000 path that is associated with amale terminal assembly 50 described herein is shown in FIG. 97, while abasic current flow path 7002 that is associated with a male terminaldescribed within PCT/US2018/019787 is shown in FIG. 98. Comparing FIGS.97 and 98, one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that theterminal assembly 50 shown in FIG. 97 has a simpler current flow 7000then the current flow 7002 associated with the terminal assembly shownin FIG. 98. The simpler current flow 7000, 7002 will reduce failures ofthe terminal assembly 54. Additionally, this simpler current flow 7000,7002 allows the terminal assembly 50 shown in FIG. 97 to carryapproximately 30% more current than the terminal assembly shown in FIG.98 while meeting industry specifications, including DIN EN 60512-5-2. Inshort, the terminal assembly 50 can be formed from less material, can beinstalled in narrower spaces, has a higher current carrying capacity, iseasier to assemble, and has other beneficial features that are disclosedherein or can be inferred by one of ordinary skill in the art from thisdisclosure.

MATERIALS AND DISCLOSURE THAT ARE INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

PCT Application entitled “Electrical Connector System With InternalSpring Component”, which: (i) has attorney docket number 293506, (ii)was filed on Jun. 7, 2019, (iii) claims priority to U.S. ProvisionalApplication 62/681,973, and (iv) is commonly owned with thisapplication, PCT Application entitled Electrical Connector System WithInternal Spring Component and Applications Thereof, which: (a) hasattorney docket number 295896, (b) was filed on Jun. 7, 2019, (c) claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Application 62/681,973, and (d) is commonlyowned with this application, and PCT Patent Application No.PCT/US2018/019787, filed on Feb. 26, 2018, each of which are fullyincorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof.

SAE Specifications, including J1742_201003 entitled, “Connections forHigh Voltage On-Board Vehicle Electrical Wiring Harnesses—Test Methodsand General Performance Requirements,” last revised in March 2010 andwhich is fully incorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof.

DIN Specification, including Connectors for electronic equipment—Testsand measurements—Part 5-2: Current-carrying capacity tests; Test 5b:Current-temperature derating (IEC 60512-5-2:2002), which is fullyincorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof.

USCAR Specifications, including: (i) SAE/USCAR-2, Revision 6, which wasleast revised in February 2013 and has ISBN: 978-0-7680-7998-2, (ii)SAE/USCAR-12, Revision 5, which was last revised in August 2017 and hasISBN: 978-0-7680-8446-7, (iii) SAE/USCAR-21, Revision 3, which was lastrevised in December 2014, (iv) SAE/USCAR-25, Revision 3, which wasrevised on March 2016 and has ISBN: 978-0-7680-8319-4, (v) SAE/USCAR-37,which was revised on August 2008 and has ISBN: 978-0-7680-2098-4, (vi)SAE/USCAR-38, Revision 1, which was revised on May 2016 and has ISBN:978-0-7680-8350-7, each of which are fully incorporated herein byreference and made a part hereof.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS

The above disclosure may represent an improvement in the art because itimproves the mechanical and electrical connection between a maleconnector assembly and a female connector assembly. Such a connectorassembly may be used in high-power, high-current and/or high-voltageconditions that may be found in the automotive industry or otherapplications (e.g., military equipment, space flight, electric vehicles,industrial machinery, etc.). It should be understood that these terms,as used herein, shall generally mean the following. “High power” shallmean an application experiencing: (i) a voltage of between 20 volts to600 volts, regardless of the current or (ii) a current greater than orequal to 80 amps, regardless of the voltage. “High current” shall meancurrent greater than or equal to 80 amps, typically greater than 80 ampsin the automotive industry, regardless of the voltage. “High voltage”shall mean between 20 volts to 600 volts, typically greater than 47volts in the automotive industry, regardless of the current.“Substantially” shall mean essentially all of or without significantdeviation from a stated value or amount.

While some implementations have been illustrated and described, numerousmodifications come to mind without significantly departing from thespirit of the disclosure; and the scope of protection is only limited bythe scope of the accompanying claims. For example, the overall shape ofthe connector system 10 may be changed to: a triangular prism, apentagonal prism, a hexagonal prism, octagonal prism, sphere, a cone, atetrahedron, a cuboid, a dodecahedron, a icosahedron, a octahedron, aellipsoid, or any other similar shape. While the overall shape of theconnector system 10 may be altered, the shape of the male terminalassembly 50 and the female terminal 30 may not be altered to match theshape of the overall connector system 10. For example, the shape of theconnector system 10 may be a hexagonal prism, while the male terminalassembly 50 and the female terminal 30 may be substantially cubic. Inother embodiments, the shape of the male terminal assembly 50 may bechanged to: a triangular prism, a pentagonal prism, a hexagonal prism,octagonal prism, sphere, a cone, a tetrahedron, a dodecahedron, aicosahedron, a octahedron, a ellipsoid, or any other similar shape. Ifthe shape of the male terminal assembly 50 is altered to be any one ofthe above shapes, then it should be understood that the female terminal30 may be altered to facilitate insertion, electrical connection, andextraction of the male terminal assembly 50 from the female terminal 30.Additionally, as described above, while the shape of the male terminalassembly 50 and the female terminal 30 may be altered, the overall shapeof the connector system 10 may not be altered to match the shape of themale terminal assembly 50.

In other embodiments, one or both of the rear spring wall 70, 134, 1134,2134, 3134, 4134, 5134, 6134 or the front male terminal wall 60, 1060,2060, 3160, 4160, 5160, 6160 may be omitted. The spring member 52, 130,1130, 2130, 3130, 4130, 5130, and 6130 may have a differentconfiguration, such as: (i) the width 106, 158, 1158, 2158, 3158, 4158,5158, 6158 of the spring arms 84, 142, 1142, 2142, 3142, 4142, 5142,6142 may be greater than the width 104, 156, 1156, 2156, 3156, 4156,5156, 6156 of the base spring sections 82, 142, 1142, 2142, 3142, 4142,5142, 6142, (ii) the width 168, 170, 1170, 2170, 3170, 4170, 5170, 6170of the spring fingers 94, 152, 1152, 2152, 3152, 4152, 5152, 6152 maynot match the width 193, 1193, 2183, 3193, 4193, 5193, 6193 of thecontact arms 188, 1188, 2199, 3188, 4188, 5188, 6188 (e.g., springfingers may be wider or narrower than the contact arms), (iii) may bemade out of a different material (e.g., memory metal) or (iv) or anycombination of these features.

In other embodiments, the male terminal body 56, 1056, 2156, 3156, 4156,5156, 6156 may have a different configuration, such as: (i) the contactopenings 189, 1189, 2189, 3189, 4189, 5189, 6189 may not be linear (e.g.curvilinear), may be different lengths, may have different widths, mayextend past where the contact arms 188, 1188, 2199, 3188, 4188, 5188,6188 intersect the intermediate segment 192, 1192, 3192, 4192, 5192,6192, or may not span nearly (e.g., 95%) of the length of each contactarm 188, 1188, 2199, 3188, 4188, 5188, 6188, (ii) the contact arms 188,1188, 2199, 3188, 4188, 5188, 6188 may not extent from the intermediatesegment 192, 1192, 3192, 4192, 5192, 6192 at an outward angle, (iii) notgap 213, 1213, 2213, 3213, 4213, 5213, 6213 may not be formed betweenthe spring member 94, 152, 1152, 2152, 3152, 4152, 5152, 6152 and thecontact arms 188, 1188, 2199, 3188, 4188, 5188, 6188, (iv) may becomprised of different materials (e.g., c151 is plated with (a) silver,(b) tin, (c) ss301, (d) other similar materials, or (e) a combination ofa plurality of these materials).

Headings and subheadings, if any, are used for convenience only and arenot limiting. The word exemplary is used to mean serving as an exampleor illustration. To the extent that the term include, have, or the likeis used, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar tothe term comprise as comprise is interpreted when employed as atransitional word in a claim. Relational terms such as first and secondand the like may be used to distinguish one entity or action fromanother without necessarily requiring or implying any actual suchrelationship or order between such entities or actions.

Phrases such as an aspect, the aspect, another aspect, some aspects, oneor more aspects, an implementation, the implementation, anotherimplementation, some implementations, one or more implementations, anembodiment, the embodiment, another embodiment, some embodiments, one ormore embodiments, a configuration, the configuration, anotherconfiguration, some configurations, one or more configurations, thesubject technology, the disclosure, the present disclosure, othervariations thereof and alike are for convenience and do not imply that adisclosure relating to such phrase(s) is essential to the subjecttechnology or that such disclosure applies to all configurations of thesubject technology. A disclosure relating to such phrase(s) may apply toall configurations, or one or more configurations. A disclosure relatingto such phrase(s) may provide one or more examples. A phrase such as anaspect or some aspects may refer to one or more aspects and vice versa,and this applies similarly to other foregoing phrases.

Numerous modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent tothose skilled in the art in view of the foregoing description. Preferredembodiments of this disclosure are described herein, including the bestmode known to the inventors for carrying out the disclosure. It shouldbe understood that the illustrated embodiments are exemplary only, andshould not be taken as limiting the scope of the disclosure.

1-40. (canceled)
 41. An electrical connector assembly for use in ahigh-power application that exposes the connector assembly to elevatedtemperatures and thermal cycling, the connector assembly comprising: afirst electrically conductive connector formed from a first material,the first connector having a side wall arrangement defining a receiverthat extends from an open first end towards a second end, the side wallarrangement having at least one side wall with (i) an aperture and (ii)a contact beam extending from a first portion of the side wall, acrossan extent of the aperture, and towards a second portion of the sidewall, and wherein the contact beam includes a free end that terminatesinward of an outer surface of the side wall; an internal spring memberformed from a second material and dimensioned to reside within thereceiver of the first connector, the spring member having a base and atleast one spring arm that extends from the base; a second electricallyconductive connector with a receptacle dimensioned to receive both thefirst connector and the spring member residing within the receiver ofthe first connector to define a connected position that withstandselevated temperatures and thermal cycling resulting from the high-powerapplication; wherein in the connected position, the spring arm of thespring member exerts an outwardly directed force on the contact beam ofthe first connector to outwardly displace the contact beam intoengagement with an inner surface of the receptacle of the secondconnector to maintain the first and second connectors in the connectedposition.
 42. The electrical connector assembly of claim 41, wherein thesecond connector is integrated into a busbar.
 43. The electricalconnector assembly of claim 41, wherein the first connector includes aplurality of contact beams and the spring member includes a plurality ofspring arms, and wherein in the connected position, a first spring armexerts a first outwardly directed force on a first contact beam todisplace the first contact beam into engagement with the inner surfaceof the receptacle, and a second spring arm exerts a second outwardlydirected force on a second contact beam to displace the second contactbeam into engagement with said inner receptacle surface, the firstoutwardly directed force being oriented in a different direction thanthe second outwardly directed force.
 44. The electrical connectorassembly of claim 41, wherein the first material of the first connectoris a highly conductive copper including at least one of the copperalloys commonly designated C151 or C110.
 45. The electrical connectorassembly of claim 41, wherein the second material of the spring memberis spring steel.
 46. The electrical connector assembly of claim 41,wherein the first material of the first connector is highly conductivecopper, and wherein the second material of the spring member is springsteel.
 47. The electrical connector assembly of claim 41, wherein thecontact beam of the first connector is formed from a sheet of highlyconductive copper that has been pre-plated.
 48. The electrical connectorassembly of claim 41, wherein the outwardly directed force exerted bythe spring arm is applied at the free end of the contact beam.
 49. Theelectrical connector assembly of claim 48, wherein the contact arm has abent-termination portion adjacent to the free end; and wherein theoutwardly directed force exerted by the spring arm displaces thebent-termination portion of the contact beam beyond the outer surface ofthe side wall.
 50. The electrical connector assembly of claim 48,wherein the first end of the first connector includes a moveable spadethat encloses the internal receiver and the spring member when it ispositioned within said receiver.
 51. The electrical connector assemblyof claim 50, wherein the second end of the first connector includes atleast one planar spade.
 52. The electrical connector assembly of claim41, wherein the first connector has an elongated configuration such thata length of the first connector is greater than both a width and aheight of a cross-section of the first connector.
 53. The electricalconnector assembly of claim 41, wherein the outwardly directed forceapplied by the spring arm on the contact beam in the connected positionis increased by residual material memory and thermal expansion due tothe elevated temperatures and thermal cycling resulting from thehigh-power, high-voltage application.
 54. The electrical connectorassembly of claim 41, wherein the first connector includes a pluralityof contact beams and the spring member includes a plurality of springarms, and wherein in the connected position, a first spring arm exerts afirst outwardly directed force on a first contact beam and a secondspring arm exerts a second outwardly directed force on a second contactbeam, the first outwardly directed force being oriented in a differentdirection than the second outwardly directed force.
 55. The electricalconnector assembly of claim 41 further comprising an electricallynon-conductive shroud that covers a substantial extent of the firstconnector while exposing the contact beam.
 56. An electrical connectorassembly for use in a high-power application, the connector assemblycomprising: a first electrically conductive connector formed from afirst material, the first connector having a side wall arrangementdefining a receiver that extends from an open first end towards a secondend of the first connector, the side wall arrangement having at leastone side wall with (i) an aperture and (ii) a contact beam extendingfrom a first portion of the side wall, across an extent of the aperture,and towards a second portion of the side wall and wherein the contactbeam includes a free end that terminates inward of an outer surface ofthe side wall; an internal spring member formed from a second material,the spring member having a side wall with an elongated spring arm; andwherein when the spring member is inserted into the receiver of thefirst connector, the spring arm of the spring member exerts an outwardlydirected force on the contact beam of the first connector to outwardlydisplace the contact beam.
 57. The electrical connector assembly ofclaim 56, further comprising a second electrically conductive connectorwith a receptacle dimensioned to receive both the first connector andthe spring member to define a connected position; wherein in theconnected position, the outwardly directed force applied by the springarm to the contact beam outwardly displaces the contact beam intoengagement with an inner surface of the receptacle of the secondconnector to maintain the first and second connectors in the connectedposition while withstanding elevated temperatures and thermal cyclingresulting from the high-power application.
 58. The electrical connectorassembly of claim 57, wherein the second connector is integrated into abusbar.
 59. The electrical connector assembly of claim 57, wherein thefirst connector includes a plurality of contact beams and the springmember includes a plurality of spring arms, and wherein in the connectedposition, a first spring arm exerts a first outwardly directed force ona first contact beam to displace the first contact beam into engagementwith the inner surface of the receptacle, and a second spring arm exertsa second outwardly directed force on a second contact beam to displacethe second contact beam into engagement with said inner receptaclesurface, the first outwardly directed force being oriented in adifferent direction than the second outwardly directed force.
 60. Theelectrical connector assembly of claim 56, wherein the first material ofthe first connector is a highly conductive copper including at least oneof the copper alloys commonly designated C151 or C110.